


Boston Boy

by MustangShelby04



Series: Boston Boy [1]
Category: Chris Evans (actor) - Fandom, Chris Evans - Fandom, OFC - Fandom
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-04
Updated: 2019-12-14
Packaged: 2021-01-23 02:28:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 17
Words: 82,514
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21312679
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MustangShelby04/pseuds/MustangShelby04
Summary: A pile of dog shit changes Kate Allen's life forever.I'm also posting this on my Tumblr account.
Relationships: Chris Evans/OFC
Series: Boston Boy [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1597207
Comments: 20
Kudos: 68





	1. Chapter 1

Finally!  
Kathleen looked around the airport as she pulled her luggage behind her. After years of being a fan of the Patriots, she’d finally bought tickets to a game and was spending a week in Boston. And even more exciting, she was doing it by herself. She’d never travelled by herself before, so this was exciting and slightly terrifying.  
It was mid morning on a Saturday and the airport wasn’t terribly busy. The rental car terminal was practically deserted as she entered to pick up her rental car. The people were friendly and the car was a newer Ford Fusion with the works inside. She plugged in the address of her hotel and made her way through the streets of Boston. The last time she’d been to this city, it had been a horrible experience. The Boston Marathon had been going on and they were in the middle of the “Great Dig”, so driving had been a nightmare. This time, she was determined to enjoy every minute.  
After getting checked in at her hotel in downtown with some minor difficulty since she was so early, she finally settled her bags in the room and began unpacking. All she needed to do was get freshened up before she went out exploring. It didn’t take her long. She swept on some mascara and pulled her shoulder length blonde hair up into a ponytail before changing into jeans, knee high boots, and a sweater.   
It was late October, but the weather was unseasonably warm. The city was just beginning to buzz with people starting their day. The Patriots were playing tomorrow and most businesses had put out their Patriot pride paraphernalia. She wouldn’t be attending that game, though. Her tickets were for the Thursday night game against the Dolphins. Her friend Lara was supposed to have come with her to the game, but she’d cancelled at the last minute. It didn’t matter, though, she would be surrounded by fellow Pats fans. Maybe she’d even make a new friend to give the extra ticket to.  
Boston Common was less than a mile away from her hotel, so she set off on foot in that direction. The best part about this trip was that she had no plans beyond the football game. She could come and go as she pleased. Check out the sites, eat the food, and enjoy museums whenever she wanted. There was no rush to be anywhere as she walked down the street towards the park.  
The day passed quickly as she wandered the park and then explored the shops and eateries around Newbury Street. The people she talked with were friendly and helpful. They seemed to really love the fact that someone from Kentucky was such a huge fan of their football team. A few people were very helpful on places to go to watch the game with fellow fans. By the time dinner time rolled around, she had a list going of places to eat at and things to see or do that weren’t tourist traps.  
For dinner, she decided to get something simple and eat at the park. She stretched out on a bench with her Kindle set to the third book in the Outlander series and started eating the PB&J she’d gotten from a little sandwich shop on Newbury Street. People wandered by her and she smiled back at them if they looked her way. The sunset made beautiful colors on the grass around her and she enjoyed the glow all the way into the dimness of evening.   
Finally the temperature dropped enough that she needed more than a sweater to stay warm. Deciding that was her cue to head back to the hotel, she turned off her Kindle and stood up. Which was when she ran straight into a tall, bearded man with blue eyes. She bounced off of him and lost her balance, falling straight back onto her backside and dropping her Kindle and purse. The contents fell out and she moved quickly to stop a runaway Chapstick tube.  
“I’m sorry.” She said as the man bent down to help her pick up her stuff.  
“It’s ok. I tried to catch you, but you bounced pretty hard.” The man said in a voice that sounded very familiar to her.  
“Oh, that’s just my boobs’ natural reaction to running into things. They throw me down.” He started laughing and she finally looked over at him after picking up her purse. “Oh!”  
“Are you ok? I didn’t hurt you, did I?”  
“No. I’m ok. Thanks. I’m so sorry I ran into you.”  
“It was my fault. I was texting and walking.”  
“That’s really dangerous. You could’ve fallen into a fountain or something.”  
“Lucky for me I just ran someone down.”  
“Yeah.” She laughed and realized her Kindle was missing. “Oh.” Turning around to retrieve it from under the bench, she heard a hiss come from behind her. “What?”  
“I think someone didn’t clean up after their dog.”  
“I’m sorry?”  
“No, I’m sorry. Oh, don’t!” He grabbed her hand before she could wipe at the wet substance on the back of her jeans. “Sorry. I knocked you down straight into dog shit. Here,” He took his jacket off and slung it around her shoulders, making sure it covered the spot up. “Do you live near here?”  
“Uh, my hotel is only a couple of blocks away.”  
“Which one?”  
“The Doubletree.”  
He smiled and ushered her down the sidewalk. “Let’s get you back there so you can clean up and I can apologize for this some more.”  
“Seriously, there’s no need to apologize. I ran into you.”  
“How about we ran into each other?”  
“I’ll accept that.” She chuckled. “I’m Kathleen, by the way. People call me Kate, though. Or Kat.”  
“Chris.”  
“Yeah. I kinda figured that out.”  
“And here I thought I was doing good at blending in.”  
“Sorry. I’m a nerd. I love all things Doctor Who and Marvel. It’s kind of hard to miss Captain America when he’s standing right in front of you. Even with a beard.”  
He smiled. “Have we met before?”  
“No. Why?”  
“You just seemed…. familiar. Thought maybe I’d met you at a convention or something.”  
“Oh. Well, I kinda fail at that part of being a nerd. Don’t tell any of the others, but I’ve never been to a convention. It’s on my bucket list, though.”  
“Your secret is safe with me.” He glanced down at her. “It’s fun. At least from my experience.”  
“I can imagine. I have friends that go to them all the time and it looks like so much fun. And since I love Halloween, it would give me a chance to use some of my costumes again.” She looked up and saw her hotel looming. “That’s me.”  
“Nice. A Halloween fan, huh?”  
“The biggest. I go all out. I usually start planning for the next year the day after Halloween.”  
“It’s only a few days away. What are you planning this year?”  
“I was going to do Peggy Carter, and I even started collecting the pieces for it, but I had the opportunity to come to Boston and I chose that instead.” They walked into the lobby and Chris called the elevator for them. It opened immediately and they stepped in. She hit the button for the sixth floor.  
“Is this your first time in Boston?”  
“Second. I was here in early 2001 for spring break.”  
He laughed and shook his head. “You came to Boston for spring break?”  
She laughed. “It’s a long story, but yes. I came to Boston for spring break.” The elevator doors opened and she led the way down the hall to her room. He held the door for her as she walked in. “I’ll be right back with your jacket.” She disappeared into the bedroom and shut the doors behind her. Taking a moment to freak out that Chris Evans was sitting in her hotel room, she jumped up and down for a few seconds. Then she caught a whiff of the dog poo on her backside and gagged. She quickly stripped those jeans off and shoved them in the dirty laundry bag from the closet. Grabbing another pair and checking to make sure there was no poop on his coat, she headed back out into the sitting room. “Thank you for giving me your jacket to hide the poop.” She handed him back his coat.  
“No problem.” He’d made himself comfortable on the couch, but had stood up when she walked in. “This is a really nice hotel room.”  
“Yeah. My mom runs a Hilton in Virginia and she got me the employee discount despite not wanting me to come on this trip.”  
“She didn’t want you to come?”  
“She worries. This is my first time travelling alone. She’s texted me about twenty times today. And don’t even get me started on my brother and my step-dad.”  
“Bad, huh?”  
“They’ve been threatening to show up and keep an eye on me. I’m surprised they haven’t sensed there’s a man in my hotel room and kicked in the door.” She glanced at the door. “You’d think I’m not almost 30 years old and been living on my own for years.”  
“It’s good they worry. Mine do too.”  
“Yeah? Try being the youngest in a family full of boys. Out of the eight cousins in my family, there’s only three girls. Myself, my sister, and Cara. Cara got married a couple of years ago and now everyone’s protective forces have shifted to me. I’m tempted to never get married just to drive them crazy.”  
“What about your sister?”  
“She’s a very long story and I doubt she’ll ever get married.”  
“Do you think the guys would show up if I bought you dinner as an apology for knocking you down?”  
She blinked for a few seconds. “You want to buy me dinner?”  
“It’s the least I can do.”  
“Are you sure? I mean…. I’m not exactly…. Well, you’re…..” She sighed. “You shouldn’t feel obligated to do anything beyond what you’ve already done.”  
“I don’t feel obligated. I want to buy you dinner. I feel terrible that I knocked you down into dog shit on your first vacation by yourself. Also, my mother raised me to be a gentleman and this is the gentlemanly thing to do.”  
“I, uh…. Ok. I mean, if you’re dead set on it, then I guess I’ll let you buy me dinner. Are you sure?”  
“I’m positive. Besides, we’ve managed to carry on a conversation without either of us turning into bumbling idiots and I wouldn’t hate continuing it.”  
“Yeah, I’m shocked I’m being so cool right now considering I am a fan of yours, but why would you ever be a bumbling idiot talking to me?”  
“Oh, uh….” To her amazement, he actually blushed. “I sometimes have trouble keeping up a conversation with someone I’ve just met. You can’t tell it, but I’m sweating bullets right now.”  
She smiled slightly. “No need to get all sweaty nervous around me. I’m just…. Well, I’m just me. Not worth the sweat.”  
“I highly doubt that’s true.” Before she could respond, he changed the subject. “So, dinner…. What would you like to eat?”  
“Uh, I don’t know. I had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich earlier and I had planned to come back here and curl up with room service.”  
“That’s no good. You’re a couple blocks from Chinatown and some really delicious food.”  
“Ok. Chinese sounds good.”  
“Great!” He bounced on the balls of his feet for a second. “I know exactly where to take you.”  
She laughed at his enthusiasm. “You’re very excited about this.”  
“Well, yeah. It’s not every day I run someone down, knock them into dog shit, and get Chinese food for it.”  
“Oh, you’re getting rewarded for it?”  
“Yeah. One could say that I already have gotten rewarded.”  
“How so?” She walked back into her room to reach in the closet and grab her coat.  
He followed her to the doorway. “I met someone new today.”  
“And she hasn’t gone psycho fangirl on you.”  
“You planning to?”  
“Gonna try not to.” She laughed again, slipping on her coat. “Honestly, I’ve met a lot of celebrities and you’re all just like us normal folks. I’m not going to scream in your ear or hump your leg or anything crazy.”  
“Thank god. I don’t know what I’ll do if you scream in my ear.”  
She laughed as they walked out of the hotel room. They headed back to the elevators and he hit the call button. “You know, this is definitely not how I pictured meeting you.”  
“Yeah? How did you picture it?”  
“Um…. At a convention with you on one side of a table and me on the other. Probably handing you something to sign.”  
“Ah.”   
“This is better, for the record. Even with the dog shit.”  
The elevator opened and he let her step on first. They made it to the sidewalk before he spoke again. “So why Boston?” He asked as they headed down the street.  
“The Patriots.”  
“The Pats? Are you a fan?”  
“Big fan. I’ve got my Brady jersey in my room ready to wear.”  
“Are you going to the game tomorrow?”  
“Not tomorrow’s game. I couldn’t get tickets for it. I’m going to Thursday’s game.”  
“Nice!”  
“My best friend was supposed to come with me, but she flaked out.”  
“That sucks. Why did she do that?”  
“Something about she didn’t want to waste vacation days because she’s got dance things coming up.” She rolled her eyes.  
He didn’t miss the eye roll. “You don’t approve?”  
“It’s not that I don’t approve. I’m glad dance makes her so happy, especially with her being separated from her husband and dealing with all of that. My problem lies with the fact that she’s really starting to shun people for the dancing thing. I swear, I haven’t seen her in weeks and that’s highly unusual for us.”  
“You’re the same age?”  
“Yes.”  
“When did she start dancing?”  
“It’s been off and on since she was a kid. There’s a lot of issues there and the dancing is just a mask for them. Honestly, it’s a can of worms you don’t want to open.”  
“Ok. New subject. How did you become a Pats fan coming from the south?”  
“My first trip to Boston.”  
“The spring break one?”  
“Yup.”  
“I think we’ve got time if you want to tell me why you came to Boston of all places for spring break.”  
She laughed. “Ok. Well, I was living with my father at the time, but planning to move back with my mom before sophomore year of high school. I wanted to get away from my father whenever possible because that was a horrible situation and my mom said I could come with her for my spring break. She had a conference to go to for her job and it was here in Boston.”  
“There’s no football during spring break, though.”  
“No. I know. It was after a really terrible season, too, but everyone I met loved their Patriots. I got my first Patriots shirt while I was here. I started watching the team to see what all the fuss was about their 2001 season and that’s when Brady showed up. So while the trip pretty much stunk, I was in love with an amazing football team. Fourteen years later and I’m still a big fan.”  
“Why did the trip stink?”  
“It was the weekend of the Boston Marathon and they were in the middle of that Great Dig thing, so things were closed or we couldn’t get to anything because streets were closed. It was crazy. There was also an incident with a shrimp that scared me off them for a while.”  
“You were right. It is a long story. I have questions.”  
“Ask away.”  
“I’m going to get back to the shrimp thing, because I can’t let that one go. But, if you don’t mind me asking, what was the horrible situation you were getting away from with your dad?”  
“I don’t call him dad, I call him my father. My step-dad is my dad. He earned that title. My father was, uh, well…. He was abusive.”  
He became really quiet and his face got very serious. “I’m sorry.”  
She shrugged. “It was a long time ago.”  
“It’s still horrible.”   
“It definitely was. It wasn’t just physical. It was mental, too. For a very long time I had body image issues and I didn’t feel like I was worth anything to anyone. I got so low that I contemplated suicide at one point. I had the pills in my hand, but my boyfriend at the time developed a sixth sense and called me. He convinced me to move back to my mom’s in Virginia. It took a lot of therapy, some great friends, and eventually getting into burlesque to get to some semblance of normal thinking back. I still have some anxiety about certain things and I’ve been known to unconsciously sabotage relationships because I don’t feel like I’m worth the trouble and I’m almost in constant terror that they’re going to lie to me. Gotta love trust issues.”   
“I’m so sorry you went through that.”  
“Thank you.”  
“Do you talk to your father at all?”  
“Yeah. He’s gotten help since then and he’s come out of the closet, so he’s a much happier man now. He’s been trying to develop a relationship with me lately.”  
“Your father is gay?”  
“Very. I’ve known it since I was thirteen and my mom confirmed it. As a friend of mine put it, my father was so far in the closet he found Narnia and wondered what the fuck happened.” He laughed and she chuckled. “He finally came out when he turned 50.”  
“Good for him.”  
“Yeah.”  
“It still sucks that he put you through all of that. I’m really sorry.”  
“Thank you. I try to make the best of it. I’ve worked with a few charities, I’ve done a couple of burlesque shows that benefit women’s shelters, and I’ve gotten to talk with some people in abusive situations that didn’t know how to get out. I was lucky I had my mom and step-dad to go back to. Not everyone is so lucky.”  
They walked into the little restaurant and were seated right away. Chris requested a booth in the back where it was quiet. They browsed the menu for a few moments before deciding on a few different options. Once the order was placed, Chris turned his full attention back to her.  
“Please tell me about the shrimp now. I gotta know.”  
She laughed. “So the hotel we were staying at for the conference was super fancy. It had this gourmet restaurant and a gift shop and a salon. I can’t for the life of me remember what it was called or even where it was located. Near the harbor, I think. Anyway, mom and I wanted to go check out this seafood restaurant she’d heard about, but since the streets were all closed and wonky and this was before GPS, we got horribly lost. Like, ended up in a different town lost. Mom got frustrated and back tracked us back to the hotel so we could just eat dinner there. I ordered fried shrimp with rice and when it came out, it was…. Well, it was a gourmet restaurant so the plate was very decorative. It had this column of rice wrapped in seaweed and these brown fried sticks coming out of it. No shrimp in sight yet. I figured it was in the rice. So I start to disassemble the plate and pluck one of the brown sticks out. But it was heavier than I’d planned because along with the stick came the whole shrimp, eyeballs and all. They had fried the entire shrimp and the brown sticks were the whiskers or tentacles or whatever the hell those things are on shrimp. It was so unexpected that I screamed, threw the shrimp, and left the table. I couldn’t eat shrimp for years after that without seeing those hollow, fried eyeballs looking at me.” She smiled at Chris’ laughter. It was a full belly laugh that almost echoed around them.  
“Why would they serve a shrimp like that?”  
“I have no idea. It was traumatizing for my fourteen year old self!”  
Once their laughter died down, Chris asked, “So if your mom was at a conference, what did you do the whole time?”  
“Explored a little bit. Checked out where the Boston Tea Party happened. Followed the Freedom Trail.”  
“History buff?”  
“Oh god yes! I love history. There’s this house in Richmond called Agecroft Hall. It was built in England around the time of the War of the Roses. In the 20s, it had fallen into disrepair and would’ve been torn down, but it was bought by a man in Richmond and he had it dismantled and brought over here to repair and rebuild it on the James River just like it had been in England. The place is gorgeous and it’s a British history museum right in the middle of Richmond, Virginia. I’ve spent countless hours there taking pictures and exploring and talking to the tour guides. I even got to put on my full Tudor costume and hang out and answer questions while people visited and I once took Tudor dancing lessons there. The Volt is very exciting and was very intimate for those times.” She noticed Chris watching her intently. “I told you. I’m a big nerd.”  
“No, it’s cool. I like it. You’re passionate about history.”  
“If we don’t learn from the past, we’ll never change the future.”  
He smiled brightly at her. “Exactly. Wait, you have a full Tudor costume?”  
“Yes. I told you I don’t do Halloween lightly. I went as Anne Boleyn one year. My mom has to be my handmaiden when I wear it because there’s no way I can get into it by myself. It’s the most expensive costume that I own.”  
“I bet. Please tell me you have pictures.”  
She smiled and pulled out her cell phone. The food came as they were browsing through her Facebook pictures. Chris kept browsing as he ate, mind half on his food as he asked about one picture and another. She was completely surprised at how calm she was being that Chris Evans was genuinely interested in her life. He held her phone hostage all through dinner as he looked at the different pictures and even took some selfies of himself and them together.  
As they walked out of the restaurant, he said, “You have a lot of pictures of your dogs.”  
She shrugged. “They’re my babies. And they’re all chock full of personality. Or…. Were…. We had to put Tucker to sleep a couple of years ago. He had cancer. And Ireland went to sleep about a month ago and didn’t wake up.”  
“I’m so sorry.”   
“She was old…. Thirteen. Even though I was expecting it, I was devastated. I had to leave work I was so upset. She was a little Nazi, but she was mine.”  
He laughed. “How was she a Nazi?”  
“She would tell on her brother if he was in the trash or doing something he wasn’t supposed to and as soon as she was satisfied that you caught him, she’d run over to the treat bowl and stare at you impatiently till you rewarded her. But then she would turn around and get into something she wasn’t supposed to and leave the evidence on Tucker’s bed to frame him.”  
“Oh my god!” His bellowing laugh echoed around them.  
“She would also smack you when you were eating to remind you that she got at least 25% of your food as payment for allowing you to live in her house.”  
“She was definitely a Nazi.”  
“She was also dramatic. She got my high school personality. I was a theatre nerd back then. The funniest thing she ever did, though, was walk into a room and if we weren’t paying attention she would let out this huge sigh and pretend to faint.”  
“She pretended to faint?”  
“Yup. Then she’d turn her head just a little to see if we were watching her performance. If we weren’t, she’d move dead into our eye line and do it again.” The bellowing laugh returned and he had to stop for a minute as he doubled over. She smiled at him and waited for him to compose himself. “Tucker was a ninja. For a 90 pound dog, he was stealthy as shit. On a number of occasions I turned my back only to turn back around and discover my sandwich or whatever I had been making was gone and Tucker was sitting in the living room licking his lips. We never did figure out how he did it so quietly. He also fancied himself a lapdog, but he was my protector. If he thought someone was there to harm me, he was one tough dog to restrain. I pretty much just prayed that I could hold him back long enough to determine if I should let him go or calm him down.”  
“He sounds like he was a good dog.”  
“He was.”  
“How old is your Boston?”  
“Gally is seven. She’ll be eight in February.”  
“What is she like?”   
“She’s crazy. She’s got a vendetta against all fuzzy slippers in the world and her best friend is a hedgehog toy that I got her when she was a puppy. She loves to run full speed in a tight circle or figure eight around the yard…. Or a person…. And she’s klutzy like her mama. I’ve never met a dog who runs into walls and trips up stairs.”  
“You run into walls and trip up stairs a lot?”  
“On a regular basis.”  
“You haven’t done it tonight.”  
“No. I’m surprised I haven’t. I’ve had a number of opportunities.”  
“Well, the night is still young.”  
“This is true. But remember how we met? I did run into you and fall down.”  
“Into dog shit.”  
“Into dog shit.”  
“Don’t worry. I won’t let you fall again.” He smiled down at her and she was sure that he was flirting with her. “So, what about the newest addition? Denali?”  
“She belongs to my parents, but she’s mouthy. Loves to talk to you and she’s not afraid to tell you off when she’s mad about something. She’s also crazy. She can spend, literally, hours chasing her tail or playing fetch. And she chases animals on TV. The TV is positioned right next to the doorway into the den and if an animal runs off screen, she’ll run into the den to find it. Of course it’s not there, so she lets you know how upset about this she is.”  
“And you live with your parents?”  
“Sort of. My step-dad converted the garage into a little apartment for me. I’ve got my own entrance and my own bathroom…. A little living room area and a bedroom that’s sectioned off by these really pretty screens that my step-dad made for me. It’s nice.”  
“It sounds like it.” He smiled. “I still live with my mom when I’m not off somewhere shooting a movie or staying in LA. My whole family and their families live there too.”  
“Must be a big house.”  
“Kinda.”  
“So, you’re close with your family?”  
“Very. My brother is one of my best friends. What about you?”  
“Same. As close as we are, I tell him constantly that I would sell him in a heartbeat for my niece. I love her to pieces.”  
“You must if you dressed up as Merida for her in Georgia in June.”  
She smiled and felt herself blushing that he remembered her telling him about it when he found the picture. “Yeah. I’ll probably end up spending most of my souvenir money on stuff for her.”  
“I wouldn’t be surprised. She is pretty adorable.”  
“That’s the thing I’m most proud of: being an aunt. I love that kid. And my best friend’s little boy is my unofficial nephew. I spoil him when I can, too.”  
“You sound like me. I love spending time with my sisters’ kids and I spoil the crap out of them whenever I can.”  
She laughed. “As much as I love spoiling Hailey, my favorite moments are when it’s just the two of us playing Barbies or going for a walk or rocking her to sleep at night. She’s four and she still likes for me to do that when I’m there.”  
“Awe!”  
“It broke my heart when she asked me not to leave in June. She woke up and came to the guest bedroom and curled up with me the morning I was leaving. She said, ‘aunt Kat, please stay one more day. I’ll be a good girl. I love you.’ God, I cried for the first half of the drive back to Virginia.”  
“Awe!” Chris wrapped an arm around her and hugged her tightly. “And wow! You drove to Georgia? How long of a drive is it?”  
“About eight or nine hours. It’s eleven hours to Kentucky. I love to travel, so I don’t mind driving. I would’ve driven here, but I actually won plane tickets in this contest at work.”  
“Tickets?”  
“Yeah. I won two. I haven’t used the other one since Lara was going to use her frequent flyer miles for her ticket. So, I’ll probably take another trip by myself somewhere.”  
“Oh yeah? Where?”  
“Vegas. LA. Alaska. I don’t know.”  
“Alaska? Really?”  
“My brother and his wife took a cruise there and they loved it. My sister in law goes a lot for work.”  
“That sounds awesome. What would you do there?”  
“Hike. Take pictures. Go ice skating on a frozen lake. Take pictures. Maybe try and camp a couple of nights. Oh, and take some more pictures.”  
“Camp, huh?”  
“Maybe. I haven’t been in a long time and I enjoyed it when I was younger. All through high school, I had to visit my father during the summer even though I didn’t want to. Some friends would kidnap me and we would go to Lake Glendale in Illinois and spend a week camping and swimming and riding horses and learning to shoot a bow and arrow…. Rock climb. It was amazing. I would love to do it again someday.” She realized they were standing in the lobby of her hotel. “Oh, we’re back.”  
“Yeah. I just realized that too.” He seemed genuinely sad about that.  
“Uh, you’ve probably got somewhere to be, right? You were going somewhere when we ran into each other.”  
“Oh, not really. I was probably going to meet Scott and some of his friends for dinner.”  
“You ditched your brother for me?”  
“It’s ok. He had just invited me and I was texting him back when I ran into you.”  
“But he’s your brother.”  
“Yeah. And I’ve had plenty of time to hang out with him. I’ve only got a week with you.”  
She opened her mouth to retort, but closed it when she realized what he’d said. Instead she settled on, “I’m confused.”  
“About what?”  
“Are you saying you want to hang out more?”  
“Yeah. Why not?”  
“Um…. You’re Chris Evans and I’m Kathleen Allen.”  
“Yeah. We’ve done introductions. It’s the entire conversation afterwards that makes me want to hang out with you more.”  
“Do you normally meet fans and hang out with them? Or am I special?”  
“You’re definitely special. I’ve met a lot of people, but you’re different. It’s nice.” He called the elevator and held it open for her. As it started its ascent, he turned to her. “It gets lonely.”  
“What does?”  
“Being a celebrity.” He said the word like it was a sour candy in his mouth. “You meet people and they know everything about you because they’ve read it in a magazine somewhere. All they want to talk about is how famous you are. They don’t actually talk to me.” The elevator opened and he held the doors so she could step out safely. “But you did. You talked and you listened. I can honestly say that you’ve been one of the best conversations I’ve had in a while. I’ve loved every second of it.”   
She opened her hotel room door and stepped inside. “Well, I don’t know if this is being presumptuous, but you’re welcome to stay and continue the conversation. I don’t have a mini bar, but there’s room service.”  
He grinned. “Yeah. It’s only eight thirty.” He followed her in and shut the door behind him, shrugging his jacket off. “That sounds fun.”  
Before she could respond, her phone went off with the James Bond theme. She quickly pulled it out of her pocket. “One sec. It’s my brother Killian.” She hit the answer button. “Hey Killi. No, I’m fine. I went out for Chinese with a really nice guy from Boston. Yes, I said guy. Yes, as in male. No, you don’t need to worry about me. I’m fairly certain all those lessons will keep me safe if the nice Boston boy decides to attack. Shut up and put my niece on.” Her face lit up suddenly. “Hey Hailey Bug! I’m in Boston. That’s waaay up north from where you are. I miss you, too. You’re coming for Christmas!? That’s so exciting! Yes, I’m pretty sure Santa will know where you are. I’ll write him a letter and make sure, ok?” She glanced at Chris with an embarrassed smile. “Yeah, I’ll sing a song for you. What do you want to hear? Again? What about something from ‘The Little Mermaid’? No? ‘Frozen’ again, huh? Ok.” With another embarrassed look at Chris to find he was holding back laughter, she started singing “Love Is An Open Door” with her four year old niece. “Ok. I love you too, munchkin. I’ll see you in a couple of months. Bye! Yeah. She made me sing ‘Frozen’ again.” She rolled her eyes. “I promise I’ll be careful. Talk to you later. Bye.” She hung up and shook her head. “I’m sorry.”  
“You have a nice voice.” Chris said.   
“Oh, no…. No. It’s…. Not that great.”  
“You’ve had training.”  
“What? How….”  
“My mom is the art director at a youth theatre. My brother and sisters and I are trained, too.”  
“My father…. On good days…. He and aunt Dolly taught me. He sang in a Christian music group around the area I grew up and his best friend, who I refer to as aunt Dolly, was a music teacher.”  
“Nice. You do have a nice voice. I wasn’t kidding.”  
“Thank you, but no. I don’t. I only sing in the car and for Hailey these days.” She turned and grabbed the room service menu. “Here, you pick something to drink and I’ll be right back. I need to take my contacts out and put on something besides jeans.”  
“You wear contacts, too?”  
“Yeah. Please don’t laugh at my glasses. I hate them.” She turned and disappeared in the bedroom. When she came back, she was in a T-shirt with minions on it and black yoga pants. Her long blonde hair was swept up in a ponytail and she had on her half frame glasses.  
“You look nice.”  
“You’re way too nice for your own good. I wouldn’t even put the glasses on if my contacts hadn’t been bugging me.”  
“Honestly, you shouldn’t be so self-conscious. You’re beautiful with or without glasses. And I’ve seen you in both now and can judge that honestly.” He sat down on the couch and patted the seat next to him. “I ordered you some sweet tea. I hope that’s ok. It’s what you were drinking at dinner.”  
“Yeah. That’s perfect.” She sat down next to him. “Wait, you wear contacts?”  
“Yeah. Got them in now. I haven’t had mine in as long as you have, so they’re not bugging me yet, but I know exactly what you were going through. It’s a pain in the ass to have to wear them that long.”  
“Amen!” She laughed.  
“So your brother’s name is Killian?”  
“Yup.”  
“And you’re Kathleen.”  
“And my sister Janice is the oddball.”   
“And your brother gave you fighting lessons?”  
“God no! He only thinks he’s tough. My cousin Todd taught me how to throw a punch. My brother taught me how to shoot a gun.”  
“Oh.”  
“Don’t worry. I don’t carry. I can also sword fight.”  
“Now why would a nice girl like you need to know that?”  
“A friend of mine is really big into medieval weaponry. He taught me how to swing a bunch of different swords.”  
“So, you can shoot a bow and arrow, you can shoot a gun, you can use a sword, and you can throw a punch. You’re officially scary.”  
“Thanks. I consider myself almost ready for a zombie apocalypse.” Her phone started ringing again and this time it was Stewie from “Family Guy” yelling “mom, mom, mom” over and over. Kate rolled her eyes and got to her feet. “Hi mom. Yeah, I’m having great fun. You talked to Killian, huh? What did he have to say? Oh, yeah? He’s being dramatic. Yeah, I did meet a nice guy that took me to dinner. Chinese. I met him in Boston Common. Uh, yeah. I’d say he was. I don’t know. I promise I’m being careful. No, I don’t want to talk to him cause he’s just going to have a cow over everything. I don’t know. Then tie him up in a closet somewhere till he calms down and realizes I can take care of myself. You have fun with that. I’ll talk to you later. Nope. Bye, mom.” She set her phone down. “My brother told my mom I met a Boston boy and I’m probably going to move here now.”  
“What would you say I was?”  
“Huh?”  
“You said to your mom ‘I’d say he was.’”  
“Oh, uh….” She blushed. “She asked if you were handsome and then she asked if I was going to see you again.”  
“That was the ‘I don’t know’ part, right?”  
“Yes.”  
“Well, change that ‘I don’t know’ to a ‘yes’.”  
“What?”  
“You’re going to see me again. Tomorrow. I’m taking you to the game if you’ll let me.”  
“The Patriots game?”  
“Yeah. While you were talking to your mom, I texted a friend of mine and got us seats in one of the suites. Great view of the field.”  
“Are you joking? Am I on a hidden camera show?”  
Chris laughed. “No. Look, I meant what I said before. You’ve been one of the best conversations I’ve had in a while and I don’t want to see it end. In fact, I’ve got the next couple of weeks off and I’d love to show you around Boston myself while you’re here.”  
“You do?”   
“Yeah! Who better to show you around this city than someone from it?”  
“Well, I guess, yeah….”  
“We can go to the game tomorrow and then grab dinner somewhere and plan our week.”  
“Chris….”  
“We don’t have to if you don’t want to.”  
“No, I do want to, it’s just….” A hundred different things went through her head to finish that sentence, but she settled on. “Unexpected.”  
“Isn’t that when life is at its best? When it’s unexpected?”


	2. Chapter 3

Kate stared at herself in the mirror trying to see what had made Chris Evans want to spend an entire week with her. He had stayed till almost one in the morning. They had spent the whole time talking and looking at pictures on their phones. Chris had taken a few of them on his phone and set one of the selfies as her contact picture when he saved her number in his phone. Now she was waiting for him to come pick her up and take her to the game. She’d thrown on some jeans, a pair of black leather motorcycle boots, and her Brady jersey. Her hair was in a high ponytail and she’d thrown on her usual makeup consisting of under eye concealer, powder, mascara, and Chapstick.  
There was a loud knocking on her door and she took a deep breath before opening it. Chris stood there with his brother Scott and another guy she didn’t recognize. Chris was beaming at her. “Good. Got the lucky jersey on. We should win today, right?”  
“If the luck holds up.” She said, smiling back.  
“Kat, this is my brother Scott and his friend Tyler.”  
“Nice to meet you.” She reached out and shook their hands.  
“You’re right, Chris.” Scott said. “She’s beautiful.” Chris blushed and avoided eye contact with her.  
“Don’t embarrass him.” Tyler said.  
“He’s my brother. I can if I want.” Scott turned back to her. “He gushed about you the whole ride over here. He used the word perfect about twelve times. And I think he wrote a sonnet about your eyes. Which are gorgeous, by the way.” It was her turn to blush.   
“Scott!” Chris cried. “Man, you have no chill.” He turned to her. “I’m sorry about him. I said I was going to the game and he invited himself and Tyler.”  
“Seriously, it’s really nice to meet you.” Scott said, giving her a bright smile. “My brother is weirdly shy and for him to actually have a multiple hour conversation with a woman he just met is really rare. Be glad he only told me about you. If our mom and sisters find out…. Well, I hope you like Boston cause they’ll move your stuff up here for you.”  
She laughed. “Wow. My brother is contemplating coming out here with one of my cousins and my step-dad to scare ‘the Boston boy’ off.”  
“We might have a war on our hands. Fun!”  
Chris laughed and looked back at her. “Are you ready?”  
“Yeah. Let me grab my coat and my phone.”  
“Is that David Bowie you’re listening to?” Scott asked as they shuffled into her room.  
“Yeah. You a fan?”  
“Of course! I don’t trust a person that doesn’t listen to Bowie.”  
“Me either.” She turned the bluetooth speaker off and unplugged her phone before grabbing her coat. Chris helped her into it and his fingers brushed the back of her neck as he helped release the bottom of her ponytail from the coat. She held onto the urge to shiver but bit down on her bottom lip. “Ok. To the game!”  
“To the game!” Chris repeated, holding the door open for her. Scott and Tyler made it to the elevators first and held the doors so Chris and Kate could get on too. She caught Chris eying her a few times and smiled to herself. Scott and Tyler were engaged in a conversation about the game and didn’t seem to notice the other two in the elevator. Chris shot her a smile and she smiled back.   
The elevator doors opened and just before she stepped out, she remembered something. “Shit! I’ve gotta run back to my room.”  
“What’s wrong?” Chris asked.  
“I forgot to take my blood pressure meds.”  
“Oh.” Chris turned and tossed the keys to his brother. “We’ll meet you out front.” He stepped back onto the elevator and waved at Scott as the doors shut.  
“I’m sorry. I keep forgetting that I’m supposed to be taking it. I haven’t been on it long, so it’s an adjustment.”  
“High blood pressure?”  
“Yes. Genetics is a bitch. Though I technically got lucky. Mom was on them from the time she was 16 and her blood pressure is really high. I just got on them last month and it’s the lowest dose of medication since my blood pressure isn’t bad. Just high enough to make my doctor and my mom worry.”  
The elevator doors opened and they stepped out. “Have you tried setting an alarm on your phone to remind you?” He asked.  
She laughed. “I’m not sure it would help. I did that for my birth control and I forgot to take it at least three days out of every month.”  
“Yikes.”  
“I don’t know why my brain doesn’t process taking medication daily on time, but it fails hard at it. It’s why I got an IUD. I never have to remember to take a pill every day. If they could invent that for blood pressure pills I’d be set.” She opened her door and rushed into the bathroom, embarrassed that she’d just told him that she had an IUD.  
“Hey, listen, I’m sorry about my brother. Sometimes things come out of his mouth before he can stop them.”  
She laughed. “I have that problem myself.”  
He appeared in the bathroom doorway. “I hope he didn’t embarrass you too much.”  
“No. It’s ok. I think he got you worse.” She popped the pill in her mouth and took a drink of water from the bottle next to the sink.  
“It wasn’t as bad as he said. I don’t think I used the word perfect that many times.”  
“I didn’t think you had. It would definitely be a major exaggeration if you said it that many times. Using it just once is exaggeration enough.”  
“Not at all. You’re pretty awesome.”  
“You’ve only known me a day. Trust me, I’m not that great.”  
“I’ve got all week with you, so I’ll be the judge of that.” He shot her a smile and moved out of the way to let her pass by him.  
They caught up to Scott and Tyler waiting in the backseat of the car. Chris held open the passenger’s side door for her to get in before walking over and getting in the driver’s seat. “So, Kate,” Scott said as they pulled out into the street. “What color are your eyes? Chris was confused.”  
“Scott!”  
“What?” Scott asked innocently. “You said they look blue, but sometimes they looked more green.”  
“They’re both blue and green.” She said before Chris could get any more red. “And my left eye has a streak of hazel in it.” Scott leaned forward and she turned to look at him.  
“That’s neat.”  
“My eyes change color, too, depending on my mood.”  
“What mood are you in now?”  
“Scott!” Chris cried.  
“What?”  
She laughed. “I’m excited right now. I’ve made new friends and I’m going to see my favorite football team play live for the first time. Unless you count when they came down to Richmond for training camp last year.”  
“You saw them at training camp?” Chris asked.  
“Yeah. They were at the Redskins training camp in Richmond for two days. I was there both because I’m a dork. I got the worst sunburn, but I got to meet Gronkowski. The only thing I could think to say was ‘you are one big dude.’”  
“Did you meet Brady?” Tyler asked.  
“I shook his hand, but I didn’t get to talk to him. There were a lot of fans there and I kind of got pushed out of the way.”  
“That sucks.”   
Chris glanced over at her and smiled as she kept up a steady flow of conversation with his brother and Tyler. They made it to the stadium and had no trouble getting inside the private entrance and up to their suite. There were a few people milling about, but the stadium below was full of people. There weren’t any players on the field yet, but there were other people out there getting ready. Chris watched her as she stayed standing by the glass, staring out at everything with a look that reminded him of Christmas morning excitement. He ordered them some drinks before joining her at the window.  
“Our seats are over here.” He pointed to ones in the second row.  
“This is unbelievable, Chris!” She was beaming and the smile was infectious. “I can’t believe I’m at Gillette! I’ve only ever seen it on TV and now I’m here.”  
“I’m happy I could put that smile on your face.” He was suddenly engulfed in a bear hug and all he could do was squeeze back as he held her up. “Wow.”  
“Sorry.” She pulled away. “I’m just so excited and you’re the best for doing this for me.”  
He laughed. “Don’t be sorry. This is exciting for me too.”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
They were well into the fourth quarter of a close game. Chris and Kate had been yelling at the teams from their seats and barely able to sit down for most of the game. Luckily they were surrounded by like-minded people. Scott and Tyler were excited about the game, but Scott kept stealing glances at his brother and his new friend. He was pretty sure that Chris was really liking Kate. He’d never seen his brother act this way with a woman he’d just met before.  
“GO!” Chris yelled suddenly as Amendola caught the pass from Brady. The stadium went mad as the refs called a touchdown. The people in front of them threw their hands up and one of the guys lost his grip on his cell phone and it flew back and hit Kate in the mouth. She instantly threw her hands up, but blood was already running down her chin.  
Chris moved into action to grab some napkins and the man that lost his phone began apologizing profusely. Scott and Tyler left to get some ice and more napkins. Finally, Chris escorted Kate out into the hallway and leaned her up against the wall. It was quieter in the hallway.  
“Are you ok?” Chris asked, holding multiple napkins to her lips.  
“Ow.” She said, her voice muffled behind the napkins. Her eyes were watering profusely and she kept wiping at them. “I think a tooth is broken.”  
“Let me see.” He pulled the napkins away and sure enough, the lateral incisor on her left side was missing a chunk. He hissed and put the napkin back.  
“That bad, huh?”  
“Uh, yeah. I’m not going to lie. You’re missing part of a tooth.” She closed her eyes and sighed. “Don’t worry. I’ve got a plan.”  
Scott and Tyler came running back with ice in a towel and more napkins. “How is she?” Scott asked, handing the towel over.  
“Broken tooth. I’m going to call dad and ask if he’ll fix it for her today.”  
“Good idea.” Scott looked at Kate. “That’s some awesome mascara you have on. It hasn’t budged at all with all that leaking you’re doing from your eyes.” That made her laugh.  
“Here, hold this.” Chris said, guiding her hand to the towel against her mouth. “I’m going to make a phone call.”  
Scott moved over to take his brother’s place in front of her and he smiled. “Our dad’s a good dentist.”  
“Good. Cause this hurts.” She said.  
“I’m pretty sure if you asked him to, Chris would go beat that guy up.”  
She chuckled. “It’s ok. It was an accident. I’m not mad. Just in pain.”  
Chris came back over. “Dad’s going to meet us at his office.”  
“You guys go.” Scott said. “We’ll grab a cab to take us home.”  
“Are you sure?”  
“Yeah.” Scott gave Kate a quick hug. “We’ll see you later, ok?”  
“Bye.” She waved at Scott and Tyler as Chris escorted her to the elevators.  
“Are you ok?” Chris asked again as the doors shut. He was clearly concerned about her.  
“You should see the other guy.” She joked.  
Chris chuckled. “I’m so sorry.”  
“It was an accident.”  
“I know, but you’re missing the last of your first game at Gillette.”  
Her eyes widened and she looked down at her jersey. “Please tell me there’s no blood on it.”  
He gently pushed her head back up, replacing the ice towel on her mouth. With a chuckle, he grabbed the bottom of the jersey and pulled it out slightly to inspect it. “Nope. No blood. I saved the good luck charm with my quick reflexes.”  
“Thank you.” The elevator doors opened and he led her out.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Bob lead Chris and Kate back out into the empty waiting room of his dental office. “You might be a little sore for a couple of days and you shouldn’t eat any hard foods for the rest of today.”  
“Thanks for doing this, dad.” Chris said. “I know it’s your day off.”  
“Yeth. Thank you.” Kate said, trying not to sound funny through the numbness in her mouth. It must not have worked because Chris was desperately trying to hold back a laugh.  
“It’s my pleasure.” Bob said. “If that tooth starts bothering you, or starts acting funny, don’t hesitate to call me.”  
“I won’t.” She followed Chris back outside where the sun had begun to set.  
“I know you’ve got to be hungry. You haven’t eaten much today.” Chris said to her as he helped her in the car. He walked around to the driver’s side and slid in. “Do you feel up to getting something to eat?”  
“I’m tharving, but I think I thould wait until this numbneth goeth away. I might drool on mythelf.”  
He didn’t hold back on the laugh this time. “I’m sorry. You sound so funny!” She stuck her tongue out at him, but it only made him laugh harder. “Ok,” His laughter finally died down. “Ok, we’ll go back to the hotel and hang out there for a while. Figure out what we want to get for dinner.”  
“Thoundth good.” He laughed again as he backed out of the parking space. “Can I play thome muthic?”  
“Yeah.” He laughed and handed her his unlocked phone.  
She scrolled through his music before selecting a track by Garbage. He shot her an approving smile and she settled back into the seat and closed her eyes. It wasn’t long before they were back at the hotel and headed back up to her room. Chris opened the door for her and she skipped the living room and went straight to the bedroom, plopping down on the king sized bed with her legs dangling from the side. He laughed and took his jacket off, laying it across the chair in the corner before sitting down on the bed next to her.  
“Did we win?” She asked.  
“Yeah. Scott texted me. We won.” He laid back.  
“Good.” She opened her eyes and turned her head to look at him. He was lying so close to her that their arms were touching and she could feel his breath tickling her nose. “Is this real?”  
“What?”  
“Are you really here?”  
He smiled and linked some of his fingers with hers. “Yeah. I’m here.”  
“Chris….”  
“Your talking is back to normal. How are you feeling?”  
“Light headed.”  
“Are you hungry?”  
“Starved.”  
“Me too. Let’s go for a walk and just pick a place we come across.” He stood up and held his hands out to help her up.  
“Sounds good to me.” She took his hands and he pulled her up. For a moment they were almost pressing against each other, but she stepped sideways and went into the bathroom. “I’ll be out in just a minute.”  
“Ok.”  
She shut the door and sat down on the edge of the bathtub. What was happening? Chris Evans was flirting with her. Her of all people. She wasn’t a movie star. She wasn’t a model. She wasn’t even close to his league. Why was he flirting with her? Fairytales weren’t real and they definitely didn’t come true for people like her. She looked in the mirror and stared at herself. There was nothing remotely special about her.  
There was a knock at the door and Chris called, “Are you ok?”  
“Yeah.” She stood up and brushed her hair. “Sorry,” She opened the door. “I was inspecting my tooth.”  
“It looks good. You ready?”  
“Yeah.”   
They didn’t talk much as they walked down the streets. It was full dark out, but the street lights and the lights from businesses lit up the sidewalk. They found a Tapas restaurant on Newbury Street a couple of miles away from the hotel and decided to eat there. After they were seated, Chris watched her for a long moment.  
“What?” She asked.  
“Nothing.” He took a sip of water and looked down at his menu. “So, you haven’t mentioned a boyfriend back home yet. Nobody special?”  
She didn’t look up from her menu. “Nope. You?”  
“Nope.”  
“Why not?”  
He shrugged. “I haven’t had a lot of time recently. You?”   
“I haven’t found what I’m looking for.”  
“What are you looking for?”  
“I have no idea. I guess I’ll know when I find it.”  
“That’s a very romantic way of thinking.”  
“Yeah? I’ve never really considered myself very romantic, honestly. I’m not a flowers and chocolates kind of girl.”  
“No?”  
She shook her head. “I prefer things that don’t die in a week and my taste buds get more excited over fruity candy than chocolate.” He nodded like he was taking mental notes. “I like stargazer lilies, though. I would accept those flowers happily.” The waiter came and took their order and they no longer had menus to hide behind. “I also have a hard time trusting people.”  
“Because of your father. I remember.”  
“That’s not the only reason.” She took a deep breath. “I was engaged to this guy. I met him at work. He was younger than me by five years, but he seemed so much older. When I met his family, it made sense. They’re mostly barely functioning alcoholics and he kind of had to raise himself. We got pretty serious pretty quick. We moved in together barely three months after we started dating. We were living in a house with an acquaintance of mine. Things were good for a while, but my best friend came over one night to take me out for a girls’ night out and he didn’t want to let me leave. He whined and moaned and said he wanted to come with me, but I laughed and said no and didn’t think much of it. But the next few months, he got really…. Possessive I guess is the word. I was kind of kept at a distance, but he didn’t like me going out with any of my friends. I look back now and realize he was using mental abuse to keep me at home. About a year into the relationship, he gave me a ring and we were suddenly engaged, but it wasn’t what I’d expected it to be.”  
“What did you expect?”  
“I don’t know. A nice gesture? Him to at least get down on one knee, you know? But we were sitting at dinner and he slid it across the table and said ‘we should get married’. I was so excited, I didn’t even really think about it then. My friends that I was still in contact with weren’t happy. They all said that I looked different and sounded different…. Like they were talking to a stranger with my face. A few months later it was Christmastime and we were busy at work. He left his phone in my desk while he was out in the warehouse and it kept going off, so I pulled it out to turn it off. The first thing I see when I unlock it is this message from a girl talking about how wet she was and how badly she needed him to come take care of her again. I opened the text up and there were more. There were pictures passed between them that should’ve only been reserved for us, you know?”  
“They were sexting.”  
“Not just. He was meeting her behind my back. And when I dug a little deeper, it wasn’t just her. It was two other girls as well. And I mean girls. They were all about eighteen years old, if that. I kind of lost my shit and my boss had to restrain me from killing my fiancé when he walked in my office. I screamed at him and my boss told me it might be best if I went home. When I got there, I just couldn’t stay there so I went to my parents’ house. The next day was a weekend for us, so I went home and confronted him about everything. He blamed it all on me. Said I wasn’t what he wanted and the only reason he kept me around was because my paycheck helped him pay the bills. I really felt less than human at that point. I told him to get out, but he said that he was just going to move into the upstairs bedroom. That he was going to bring his girls home and fuck them so loud every night I would never get any sleep. So my roommate, who heard all of this, told me he would let me out of the lease if I wanted to leave. I’ve never packed up a house so fast. My friends Ryan and Mike, they had heard through my parents what had happened and they came and helped me move. We were out of there in 4 hours.”  
“Damn. I’m so sorry.” He reached over and took her hand.  
“It doesn’t stop there. After about a month of seeing him at work and still having these annoying feelings for him, I let him come back. We started seeing each other again. I found out that I had a strain of HPV that could be treated and gone in two years, but it was still an STD. It’s a dangerous one, too, that can lead to cancer later on in life. Anyway, he accused me of cheating on him because there was no way he had given it to me. You’d think I would’ve wizened up at this point, but I let him stick around. I was living at my parents and they went out of town, so he came to stay with me for a weekend. That Monday he left work before me and kept asking me for the key to my parents’ house. I told him no, I didn’t feel comfortable giving him the key and he said that someone had to feed the dogs because I didn’t know when I’d be home. He promised he would be waiting for me. I was busy with work and he just kept pestering me, so I gave in against my better judgment. When I got home a couple hours later, he was just shutting his car door and getting ready to leave. I got out to ask him what was going on and I spotted the Wii that he’d bought me sitting in his car. He’d gone into my parents’ house and stolen it. I tried to get past him, but he was bigger than me and he shoved me backwards. I ended up landing on the gravel and scraping up my hands and that snapped me back to myself. I got up and decked him so hard when he fell, he cracked his window on the driver’s side of his car. I grabbed my phone to call the cops and he hightailed it out of there.”  
“Fuck!” He shook his head. “No wonder you have trust issues.”  
“I’m working on the trust thing, but it takes time.”  
Their food came finally and they ate in silence for a little while. Chris kept stealing glances at her which she pretended not to notice. The only conversation they made was on how good or bad the food was. They had ordered about six different types of tapas and were making their way through each one.   
A little over half way through, Chris said, “Did he even feed the dogs?”   
She looked up at him incredulously, but began to laugh. “You know what? I don’t think he did.”   
“Fucking asshole.” They laughed until their sides hurt and the waiter had to come over and make sure they were ok. They finished their dinner and Chris paid for the meal before they started walking again. They made their way towards Boston Common and were standing on the bridge looking out over the lake with the swan boats.   
They leaned their arms against the railing and listened to the sounds of the evening around them. Chris moved closer to her and purposely rubbed his knuckles against the back of her hand. She looked over at him like he’d lost his mind and he gave her an embarrassed look.  
“Was that too forward?” He asked.  
“Uh….” She stood up straight.  
“You seem a little freaked out whenever I touch you. I don’t want that. I just…. I like you.”  
She gave him another ‘are you crazy’ look and shook her head. “It’s barely been two days. You don’t even know me.” She started to walk away and he moved to catch up.  
“But I want to get to know you. I feel a connection to you, Kat. You’re not like anyone I’ve ever met.”  
“How is that even possible?”  
“I don’t know. But it’s true. I feel completely at ease with you. I don’t feel that with anyone else outside of my family. Especially not this quickly.” Chris boldly took her hand and pulled her to the stairs on the side of the bridge. There was no one there, so he sat her down at the bottom of the steps and stepped back a couple of paces. “Look, I’m not saying let’s run off to Vegas and get married. I’m just saying…. Let’s seize the moment. Live in the now. See where this goes.”  
“I’m leaving in a week.”  
“I’ve got two weeks before I need to be anywhere and I’ve never been to Richmond. I want to get to know you and see what happens. If you don’t feel like there’s anything here, I won’t push it. But will you at least give it the two weeks? Please?”  
“What happens after two weeks?”  
“I don’t know. But if there’s something real here between us, I don’t want to regret not trying.”  
“How could there be anything between us? You’re completely out of my league.”  
“What do you mean?”  
She surged up and walked past him towards the water, stopping just before the edge. “Have you looked in a mirror? Have you seen your ex girlfriends?” She turned back to him. “I’m a fan of yours, Chris, remember? I’ve looked up your name on Tumblr and seen you in magazines while I buy groceries. I know that I don’t even come close to stacking up with your life. I’m ordinary. You’re extraordinary.”  
He laughed. “I’m not extraordinary. I’m nothing close to it. I’m a dude from Boston who listens to 90s music and drinks beer and laughs at fart jokes. I’m the most ordinary guy out there. You’re the extraordinary one.” She huffed. “Really?” She huffed again. “Ok, from the little that I know about you so far, you’re remarkable. You’ve survived an abusive parent, you were at the brink of suicide and fought back, you went through a terrible relationship that nearly killed your spirit, and you’ve survived a family full of boys. As far as I’m concerned, you’re a fucking superhero. I’m in awe of you.”  
She shook her head. “The internet never said you were crazy.”  
“Well, the internet doesn’t know everything about me.” He grinned. “Look, it’s two weeks and if at the end of it, you don’t want anything to do with me, then I’ll go back to work and we’ll both just have great stories about the times we went to new places together.”  
“Fine. Ok. I will spend the next two weeks with you. But if you’re going to get to know me, then I want get to know Chris Evans, the beer drinking fart guy from Boston.”  
He laughed. “Ok. Fair enough.”  
“I still feel like I’m Jim Carrey in the Truman Show, though.”  
“There are no cameras. I promise.” He held his hand out to her and after a moment’s hesitation, she took it.


	3. Chapter 3

“So what’s on the agenda today?” Kate asked as Chris walked into her hotel room.  
“I thought we could hit up some museums. Maybe check out the aquarium.” Chris said, bouncing on the balls of his feet.  
“Someone’s excited today.”  
“Yeah. I have good reason to be.” He grinned at her and she couldn’t help but smile back.  
“Do you have something planned?”  
“Nope. I’m just spending the day with you.”  
She chuckled. “Your enthusiasm is appreciated, but I keep telling you that I’m not that exciting.”  
“I’ll be the judge of that. Besides, the first day I met you, you ended up in dog shit. The next day, you ended up with a broken tooth.”   
“I’m hoping that particular pattern doesn’t continue.”  
“Well, if it does, I’m here to make sure you’re ok.”  
“My hero.”  
“Maybe if you’re lucky, I’ll sweep you off your feet later.”  
She laughed. “I doubt that. I’m heavier than I look. It’s all in the boobs and butt.”  
He shrugged and suddenly swept her up in his arms. She clung to his neck as her eyes widened and she realized he was actually holding her up. “I lift a lot of weights.” He kissed her cheek before setting her down. “And you’re not that heavy.”  
She laughed. “That’s the first time that’s ever happened to me.”  
“No one’s ever swept you up in their arms before?”  
“Not since I was in my early teens. It wasn’t so much a sweep-me-off-my-feet thing. It was more to get me up on doctor’s tables or put me back in my wheelchair or on my crutches. I was in a leg brace for a while after breaking my kneecap and tearing my ACL.”  
“Ouch! What happened?”  
“I was practicing a sit spin and I was too close to the boards. I travelled into them and my knee bent the wrong way before I sling-shotted back around and hit my kneecap hard enough to crack it in three places.”  
“Fuck!” He shook his head. “What’s a sit spin?”  
“Did I fail to mention that I was a figure skater from age six till age thirteen?”  
“Yes.”  
“I was a figure skater from age six till age thirteen.” She laughed. “And a sit spin is where you spin on one blade in a crouched position with the other leg extended in front of you.”  
“Oh! I didn’t know what it was called. So, can you still skate?”  
“Not at all like I used to. It’s not like riding a bike. I can still go forwards and backwards and sideways and do some spins and stops, but no jumps or fancy footwork or anything really cool. I still go skate every now and then.”  
“Nice. It’s good you didn’t leave it completely behind.”  
“If I hadn’t busted my knee, I would’ve continued in competitive skating. I loved it. A lot. For a while it was my escape from everything bad in my life. It still kind of is sometimes. There’s nothing in the world like turning on the music and having the ice all to yourself while you feel the cold air flying past you. It’s my form of meditation, I guess. Nothing else exists when I’m on the ice.” She sighed. “I did get one thing from my busted knee, though. I can tell you when rain or snow is coming. And neither of them are going to bother us today, so let’s go enjoy the day, shall we?”  
He laughed. “We shall.”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Chris and Kate made their way through the aquarium side by side. They’d strolled through two museums before making their way to the aquarium. They’d been there for the last hour and a half just enjoying each other’s company. At the moment, he was enjoying her reactions to the penguins. She laughed when one penguin tried to jump from one rock to the next and failed, splashing into the water.  
“I love penguins.” She said. “I think they’re my spirit animal.”  
“Yeah? How come?”  
“They’re klutzy and adorable. I want one.”  
He laughed. “I’m not sure they’d make a great pet.”  
“Are you kidding me? Penguins love humans. I imagine they’d be like puppies.”  
“How would you house break them?”  
“Good question. Maybe just like a puppy? Positive reinforcement. Give them an anchovy whenever they piddle on the puppy pad.”  
“Well what about their climate? They need cold.”  
“Not all penguins.” She pointed at the little African penguins. “They don’t live in the cold all the time. They’re from South Africa.”  
“You’ve got this all planned out, huh?”  
“Not entirely. It’s mostly just a long shot of a dream.” She turned and began to walk. He caught up with her and she said, “Dolphins.”  
“What about them?” He asked.  
“They’re my favorite animal. Ever since I was a kid. One day I want to go swimming with them. There’s this place in Florida….”  
“Discovery Cove. Yeah, I’ve heard of it. Never been, though.”  
“Me either. But I want to go.” They walked into the gift shop and started browsing. “When I was little, I wanted to be a dolphin trainer. I wanted to be able to work alongside these beautiful animals and help take care of them…. I still wouldn’t hate it.”  
“Then why don’t you go for it?”  
She laughed. “I’m much too old to be a dolphin trainer now.”  
“You’re only 30.”  
“Hey. I’m 29. I’ve got a couple of weeks left before I hit that particular milestone birthday.”  
“It’s not bad.”  
“Oh, I know. In fact, I’d like to celebrate it. Lauren and I always talked about going to Disneyworld for our 30th birthdays, but she’s not seeming so interested in it now. We were supposed to start planning this year, but every time I bring it up, she has an excuse.” She sighed. “One day I’ll go to Disneyworld.”  
“Wait, you’ve never been?”  
“Nope. It’s a thorn in my relationship with my mother.” She laughed. “That woman has been telling me she’ll take me to Disneyworld for almost 30 years and I still haven’t seen the inside of the most magical place on earth. For someone who has lived and breathed Disney most of her life, it pains my heart.”  
“Why haven’t you gone?”  
“Not enough time or money…. Or anyone to go with. I told mom that even if I had a family of my own, when I do go to Disney, she’s paying for me.”  
He laughed. “So you’re a Disney fan, huh?”  
“Of course! What, you couldn’t tell by the Merida costume?”  
He laughed. “I probably should have. It was fairly elaborate. Right up there with Merida from Disneyworld.”  
“I know. My niece went to Disneyworld this summer. Thank god the woman playing the part was a good actress because Hailey wanted to talk all about the time Merida came to visit for her birthday.”  
“It’s pretty impressive that she remembers it.”  
“I know! She was only two!” She looked around. “I’ve got to use the restroom. I’ll be right back.” She lightly touched his arm before rushing off. When she came out, Chris was waiting for her with a fluffy stuffed penguin in his arms.  
“I know it’s not a real one, but I thought it was a start for your long shot dream.” He handed it to her. “And a way to remember our visit.”  
She laughed. “I think I’ll name him Cap. He looks like an honorable penguin.” He laughed. “Well, what about you? What’s your favorite animal?”  
Chris paused to think for a minute. “Probably an elephant. They’re such majestic, peaceful creatures.”  
Kate smiled at him. “Good choice.”  
“Thanks. Are you hungry? I have an idea for dinner.”  
“Oh, you have an idea, huh? I didn’t know you could have those.”  
“Ha! Come on, blondie. Let’s go.” He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and smiled to himself. He was glad they were able to pick on each other without either of them getting offended. It meant, at least to him, that they were getting comfortable with each other.  
“You’re not going to tell me your idea?”  
“I’m pretty sure you’ll figure it out kinda quick.”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Chris pulled into the parking lot of Whole Foods and she looked at him suspiciously. “I make a mean chicken carbonara. Unfortunately I don’t have everything I need, so I have to make a pit stop.”  
“Wait…. You’re going to cook for me?” She asked. “Where?”  
“At my place.” He smiled at her shocked face. “I just thought a night in away from the hotel would be nice. I know it can start to feel cramped in a hotel room even after a couple of days.”  
“You want to take me to your place?”  
“Why not? Afraid I’ll give you food poisoning?”  
“No. I don’t know why not. I was just…. Surprised that you wanted to show me your place.”  
“Technically this is our third date.” He got out and came around to open her door for her.  
“Well, it’s our first if you’re counting the fact that you didn’t ask me to see where this goes until last night.”  
“True. But that’s just a technicality.” He stopped and she turned to face him. “I mean it when I say that I’ve never felt so comfortable with someone so quickly. Usually I have a problem with the English language and I sweat profusely and it’s never a good thing, but….” He reached out and took her hands. “I like you. You’ve got this light that I’m just drawn to.”  
“Like a bug zapper?” She laughed, trying to brush off the seriousness that had descended upon them.  
“Only if you choose to keep your guard up.”  
The seriousness in his voice, stopped any jokes she was about to make. “I don’t mean to, Chris.”  
“I know. You’ve been hurt bad by multiple men in your life. One of them you were supposed to be able to trust not to ever hurt you. So, I know that it might take some time for you to completely grasp that I like you and I’m willing to keep trying until you trust me.”  
“They’re just stories, though.”  
“What?”  
“Fairytales. They’re just stories.”  
“This feels like a fairytale to you?”  
She shrugged. “Three days and the handsome prince is star struck by the peasant girl. If only we’d met in the woods and gone dancing, maybe this would sink in better. I don’t know.”  
He chuckled. “Well, you are blonde like Sleeping Beauty and just as pale.”  
“And you’re just as handsome as Prince Phillip. Who was my first crush, by the way.”  
Chris took her hand and they walked into the store. “You had a crush on a cartoon?”  
“Don’t judge.”  
“Oh, I’m not. My first crush was Maid Marian from Robin Hood.”  
“The Disney version?”  
He blushed slightly. “Yeah.”  
“I thought Robin Hood was cute.”  
That made him laugh. “What was it about Prince Phillip that you liked?”  
“He was dashing and brave and very well drawn. And he talked to his horse like he was a person. I’ve always talked to my animals like that.” He grinned. “What was it about Maid Marian that you liked?”  
“She was spunky. I thought I could have fun with her. I used to run around pretending to be Robin Hood. I would say all of his lines for him when the movie was on. Which would make my sister Carly come after me.”  
“You’re the second oldest child, right?”  
“Yup. Carly, then me, then Scott, and then Shanna.”  
“What are they like? Well, besides Scott, because I met him and he’s a pretty cool guy.”  
Chris smiled as he picked out the cheese he was planning to use that evening. “Carly is your typical older sister. Bossy, slightly overbearing, used to be a bully to her younger siblings, but you never fucked with her family or she would come after you like Jason Borne.” She laughed and followed him down the next aisle. “Scott and I were always close growing up. I would usually get us in trouble and he would always take the heat for it because he was too nice. And Shanna…. She’s your typical younger sister. She’s the baby, you know. Bratty, kind of annoying, but not loud. She’s one of the quiet ones. Definitely prefers to keep to herself. I can’t say I blame her with a family as loud as ours is. But she’s my baby sister and there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for her.”  
“What about your mom?”  
“She’s insane.”  
She laughed. “Isn’t that description of most mothers?”  
“Probably? Is yours?”  
“You have no idea.”  
He laughed. “Ma is…. She collects anything and everything I’ve ever done. Every newspaper or magazine that I’m in, she collects it. She has a shelf with nothing but DVDs and Blurays of my movies and even the TV shows I’ve done. She’s so proud of me that she’s bursting at the seams with it. And she’s one of my best friends. I tell her everything. I always have.”  
She smiled. “She sounds great. Your whole family does.”  
“What about yours?”  
“Uh…. Mom is definitely insane. We don’t always get along, though. She has very strong opinions and isn’t afraid to shove them on you. Sometimes I get the feeling that she thinks I’m still a misguided kid that she needs to guide by the hand. Though she’s never really had to worry too much about me because I’m boring. I’ve never done drugs. I didn’t have sex until I knew I was ready and it was with someone I’d been with for a really long time. The first time I skipped school was senior year the day before prom to go shopping and like a bad episode of Saved By The Bell, I got caught by a news crew doing interviews with teenagers about the new program they were implementing at the mall. And much to my surprise, mom wasn’t mad. She was excited that I had done something semi-bad.”  
Chris had finished getting everything he needed and they headed for the checkout counter. “So you were a goody two shoes?”  
“Yeah, I guess. I did go through a goth phase for a while. Drove my mom bonkers because all I wanted to do was shop at Hot Topic, listen to rock music, and read vampire novels. I even dyed my hair blonde on top and blood red on bottom.”  
Chris looked her up and down. “I cannot see you as a goth. Please tell me there’s photographic proof.”  
“Unfortunately there is. But, fortunately, I don’t have any with me. It’s all back home in photo albums.”  
He gave her hand a quick squeeze. “I can’t wait to see them. I feel like I’m going to have the best blackmail on the planet.” They stepped up to pay and before he could get in his wallet, she ducked under him and swiped her card. “What are you doing?”  
“Paying.” She grinned up at him as she put in her pin. “You’ve gotten dinner the last two nights. At least let me get this since you’re cooking.”  
“I don’t think I have a choice now.” He playfully bumped her with his hip as she took the receipt and he picked up the bags. The girl that had rung them up was staring unabashedly at Chris and giving Kate the stink eye from the side of her stare. Chris seemed completely oblivious as he dug in his pocket for his car key. Kate smiled politely at the girl and followed Chris out.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
“Well, this is it.” Chris said as they walked back into the living room of the spacious apartment. “I keep it for when I need some time to myself.”  
“Or when you have a girl over that hasn’t made it to family meeting level yet?”  
“Uh, I guess so. I haven’t actually had any girls over here since I got the place. You’re the first.”  
She blushed and walked over to the windows overlooking the city. “It has a great view.” They were at the top floor of a fourteen story building.  
“The roof is mine, too. I’ve got a little patio set up there with a grill.”  
“Nice.” She turned back around to see him in the kitchen getting everything ready to cook. Walking over to the island, she slid onto a stool and watched him work for a moment. He shot her some smiles as she sat there.  
“Oh! Would you like something to drink? Fuck, I’m a moron for not thinking of it.” He opened the refrigerator and rifled around. “I have beer, beer, water, beer, and oh look…. A bottle of white. No idea how that got in there. I’m blaming Scott.”  
“Well, whoever it was, I’ll thank them later.”  
“White wine?”  
“Sounds good to me.”   
Chris rummaged through the drawers till he found a corkscrew and opened the bottle. He pulled down a wine glass and poured her a generous amount. “I have no idea what kind it is.”  
She grabbed the bottle and tilted it. “Oh, yum. It’s a Riesling. I love Rieslings. Busch Gardens in Williamsburg has this shop in their Germany section that sells a bottle from this winery called…. I think…. Zeppelin. It’s all in German and has a picture of a zeppelin on it. And the lady at the store said that it was served on the Hindenburg. But I love it. I get a bottle pretty much every time I go.”  
“Busch Gardens? The amusement park in Florida?”  
“Well, there’s two of them. One in Florida and the one near me in Williamsburg. The one in Florida is more Africa themed, I think. I’ve never been. I know they have a lot of wildlife there. The one in Williamsburg is called Busch Gardens Europe. It has different sections that are different countries. Kind of like Epcot, but not.” She chuckled. “I have a season pass. They’re doing Hallowscream right now.”  
“Cool. Do you think we can go?”  
“I don’t know. I mean, I think this weekend is the last before they start setting up Christmastown.”  
Chris stopped what he was doing and turned to her. “Christmastown?”  
“Yeah. They turn the entire place into a Christmas wonderland. There’s lights everywhere! One section of the park has snow. And there’s hot chocolate for days! The Santa they have looks like the real deal. They have different Christmas shows and some of the rides are open. It’s really neat. And I’m extremely excited because Elvis Stojko has a show this year.” At his blank look, she elaborated. “He’s a pretty famous figure skater from the 90s. Kinda known as the bad boy of skating.”  
“Oh. That’s really cool. I’d like to go to Christmastown. It sounds awesome.”  
“Well, I may know someone who can get you in at a discounted rate.”  
“Yeah? You may need to call her up and tell her to make plans for a date one evening.” He winked at her and got back to work. She blushed and looked into her wine glass. Three days in and he was talking about making future plans with her. What was happening? “So, tell me more about your family. You said your sister is a long story.”  
“Ugh! Where do I even begin with her?”  
“Well, generally the beginning is a good start.”  
“Ok. I’m three years older than her and she’s not supposed to exist. My mom got her tubes tied when she had me. She didn’t want another kid. But somehow, one of the tubes came untied or something and my sister was conceived. She was six weeks early and had all kinds of problems. We didn’t find out until about three or four years later that she’s partially deaf. My mom babied her and my father loved her. He never hurt her like he did my mom and I.” She took a long sip of wine and he turned to look at her. “I had a lot of anger when my parents split up and my mom moved us to a different state and she married someone new and I broke my knee and couldn’t skate anymore…. I took it out on Janice. I turned into my father. My mom sent me away to my grandmother’s house. My father was living with her, but Memaw was sort of my protector. He didn’t really mess with me. And then my father decided he wanted custody of us both and fought my mom. He won and my sister stayed in Kentucky with us. Then my grandma died and I was front and center for the mental and physical abuse. Jan was completely oblivious to it. When my mom found out I had planned to kill myself, she brought me here for spring break and told me that when I finished my freshman year I would be moving back with her. She wanted to bring my sister, too, but Jan chose to stay with our father. She was going to a school where she wasn’t getting the help she needed and our father didn’t give a shit about her, so she just…. Wilted. My sister is a 73 year old woman stuck in a 27 year old body. Lara is going to school for her masters in psychology and she’s pretty sure Jan has Asperger’s. All of her little quirks made sense once I read up on it. But the damage is done. Jan and I don’t get along that great. I love her. She’s my sister. I will defend her with my life and have a couple of times. But we spend a lot of time at each other’s throats.”  
Chris turned back to his cooking before he burned anything. “It’s a sibling thing, maybe?”  
“She’s a stick in the mud. I’m a…. Well, the word vivacious gets thrown around a lot. She doesn’t have a sense of humor, I’m kind of a sarcastic jerk like the rest of my family. She’s the black sheep of the family.”  
“Every family has one.” She took another long sip of her wine and realized she had drank it all. “Here,” Chris grabbed the bottle out of the fridge and poured her some more. “What about your brother? Where was he in all that?”  
“Uh, my brother is actually my step-brother. It’s very rare that I distinguish that. He’s been in my life since I was really young. He’s had a tough childhood, too. His mother was a raving lunatic and forged his dad’s signature on papers that signed his parental rights away so Killi could be adopted by her new husband. My step-dad is an alcoholic, so he was too drunk to know what happened until much later. He’s been sober for the last sixteen plus years. January will be seventeen years. Anyway, Killi lived with his mom in Tennessee and came out to visit more and more. He went to college in Alabama and while he was in his junior year, his mother committed suicide and blamed it on him. Left him a note saying it was because he left her and went away to college. He was really messed up about it. It’s only recently that he sought help.”  
“Fuck! Poor guy. You’re closer to your brother, then?”  
“Oh yeah. Bad childhoods make instant connections.” She chuckled. “He’s my big brother and he acts like it. We pick on each other and we share things that no one else knows. He’s the one that convinced my mom not to lose her shit about me getting a tattoo. When the asshole cheated on me, my sister in law said she had to beg and plead with Killi not to grab his gun and drive up to ‘take care of things’. He was incredibly proud of me for giving the asshole a nice shiner.”  
Chris laughed. “I’d say he deserved worse than a shiner.”  
“Well, yeah. He probably would’ve gotten it too if he hadn’t run off like he did.” She took a deep breath. “It smells great.”  
“It’ll be done soon.”  
“Where did you learn to cook?”  
“Watching my family. We’re part Italian, so there’s always someone cooking something. I just watched and learned. Truthfully, this is about as skillful as I get on my own.” He checked the bread in the oven before leaning his arms against the island in front of her. “What about you? Can you cook?”  
“Uh, yes and no. I can cook, but I’m much better at baking. I love to make bread. It’s a lot of work, but the payoff is usually worth it.”  
“Where did you learn?”  
“My mom. She and my father were both chefs for a while. Well, my father still is. Mom cooks almost every night. There’s a bookshelf in the corner of the house that’s filled with cookbooks. Everything you’ve ever wanted to make is probably in that bookshelf.”  
“What’s your favorite food?”  
“Oh god…. Uh…. Do I have to choose just one?”   
He laughed. “A foodie, huh?”  
“Lately, yes. I’ve decided to try new things. I was a picky eater for a long time. While I was skating, my diet was pretty strict. So was the regimen. I’m pretty sure that it would’ve made your training for Cap look like child’s play.”  
“Try me.”  
“Ok. I was up about 4:30 every morning, went to the rink to train, came home, ate breakfast, did whatever studying I needed to do for that day, then it was off to school. After school, depending on what day it was, I would go to ballet class, or pilates, or gymnastics, or weight training, then it would be back to the rink to work on choreography before going home and doing homework, eating dinner, and then going to sleep before doing it all again the next day. I was a machine. At the age of twelve I could leg press 375 pounds.”  
“Fuck! Every day?”  
“Every day. I got started kind of late age-wise. I trained like crazy to catch up and be the best I could be. And all the while, I had to maintain no less than Bs in all of my classes or else mom would make me stop skating.”  
“Yeah, I just eat healthy and lift weights every day. Lots of protein shakes.”  
“Ugh! I always hated those. I didn’t need them much, though. The curse is trying to put on muscle without putting on weight. Just a couple of pounds could throw off your center of gravity and that leads to all kinds of badness. The list of injuries I could give you that I’ve been through is as tall as me.”  
“Oh, then that’s not that long, then.”  
She rolled her eyes at him. “Yeah, yeah. I’m short.”  
He laughed and went back to finish the chicken carbonara. “So, you’re trying new things, huh?”  
“Richmond is full of restaurants. It’s a very bohemian city, so there’s lots of different types of food offered there. I’ve started trying new restaurants and new cuisines.”  
“Ok, so what’s the best thing you’ve ever put in your mouth?”  
“Um…. There’s a place in Williamsburg called Le Yaca. It’s a French restaurant that actually came from France. I think the original is still in France. But their food is sinfully good. Their bread is amazing. I love their French Onion Soup and their house salad. But they have this dish called la crêpe au crabe. It’s fresh crab meat and béchamel sauce with Swiss cheese and sometimes there’s vegetables all wrapped in a crêpe. It’s so good it’s made my eyes mist just thinking about it.”  
“I think I might have to break my diet for that next week.”  
“I think you might have to, too. It’s not my favorite restaurant, though. That title belongs to Pattis in Grand Rivers, Kentucky. I’ve been going there since I was a baby. I always get excited when I see the signs for it on the interstate.”  
“It’s funny. You really don’t strike me as someone from a small town.”  
She laughed. “Well, I am. I almost fell into the small town life. Like a good small town girl, I had a boyfriend from seventh grade all the way until the summer before senior year. At Christmas in our junior year, he proposed to me and I said yes because I did love him. But a year and a half before that I had moved to Virginia and it was definitely changing me. When I went back home in summer, I broke it off because I didn’t want to get married at eighteen. I really didn’t want to move back to a small town with bad memories and he wouldn’t move away because he was inheriting his parent’s very successful real estate company. But if I had chosen to go back, I would’ve been a really young mother with a white picket fence and a dog.”  
“Do you regret giving that up?”  
She smiled. “Not in the slightest. If I had, I wouldn’t be sitting in Boston with someone I admire cooking for me and wanting to spend a ridiculous amount of time with me.”  
Chris smiled brightly and she fought the urge to get up and pin him against the counter with a fiery kiss.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
After dinner, which had been delicious, they relaxed on the sofa. The bottle of wine was nearly empty now. It was sitting on the coffee table next to her wine glass. The conversation between them had flowed easily and the silence that was surrounding them now was peaceful. They had tried to find a movie to watch, but nothing had really jumped out at them. Her legs were stretched out in front of her and resting on Chris’s lap where he’d placed them. His hands ran lightly up and down her jean clad shins absentmindedly.  
It was Chris who finally broke the silence. “So, what should we do tomorrow?”  
“The whale watching trip sounds like fun. I’ve never done that. And I’d like to visit the U.S.S. Constitution.”  
“Sounds like fun to me.”  
“Chris, do you want to go to the game with me Thursday? Since I have the extra ticket.”  
He smiled at her. “Yeah. I’d love to go to the game with you. Let’s make sure the people in front of us don’t have a cell phone, though.”  
“Good idea.”  
“Hey, nothing crazy happened today.”  
“I thought for sure I’d end up at least tripping and falling into the penguin habitat.”  
“I’m sure you wouldn’t have minded.”  
“Nope. I’d have found a way to sneak one of them out.”  
“Cap would’ve had a friend.”  
“Well, it’s ok. He’ll have plenty of other friends at home.”  
“You have lots of stuffed penguins?”  
“I have lots of stuffed animals. He’ll probably end up with Captain Bearica.”  
Chris laughed. “Captain Bearica?”  
“When I was back home this past June, my best friend Amanda and I took her son David, my ‘nephew’ to the Zoo and to the Science Museum in St. Louis. They have a Build A Bear on the bottom floor and he begged to go in there. He wouldn’t make a bear until I’d picked one out for myself. They had one Captain America bear left, so I grabbed him and I named him Captain Bearica. He hangs out with Thumper from ‘Bambi’.”  
“Awe! I love Thumper.”  
“Me too. My Thumper is old. I’ve had him since I was a baby. He’s been thoroughly loved.”  
“I have a stuffed Copper from when I was a baby.”  
“From ‘Fox and the Hound’?”  
Chris smiled brightly. “Yeah! Good guess.”  
“I told you I’m a Disney fan.”  
“I’m getting that.”  
She smiled and noticed that the tattoo on his chest was peeking out from his open henley shirt. Without thinking, she reached over and ran a finger across it. “What does it say?”  
“My tattoo?” She nodded. “‘When you lose touch with inner stillness, you lose touch with yourself. When you lose touch with yourself, you lose yourself in the world.’ It’s a quote by Eckhart Tolle.”  
“Pretty. And very insightful.”  
“Thank you. It’s just a little reminder to myself.”  
“I have one of those.” She lifted her left leg and pulled the leg of her jeans up, twisting it to reveal a tattoo on the lower part of her shin just above the ankle. Around a four leaf clover, it read “Tomorrow is another day.” “It has different levels of meaning to me.”  
Chris traced the tattoo with his finger. “‘Gone With the Wind.’”  
“It’s my favorite movie. I try to watch it at least once a year. I got to see it on the big screen for the first time ever last year and I completely lost my shit. I didn’t even make it to the opening credits before I started sobbing. The music swelled and I was lost. My mom thought it was hilarious. It’s also the very last line of the book, which I love, and a way to tell myself to be as strong as Scarlet was. Because she was right. It may be hard and you feel completely hopeless today, but there’s always tomorrow to deal with it.”  
He looked up at her and was smiling brightly. “You’re incredible.”  
She smiled back. “You’re not so bad yourself.”


	4. Chapter 4

“My mom knows about you now.” Chris said as they made their way to the landing for the whale watching trip.  
“Does she?” Kate asked.  
“She called me this morning and wanted to know if I was ok since I haven’t been around in a few days. And Scott mentioned that I was keeping myself busy in a tone that implied something more.”  
“So, you told her about me? What did she say? What did you say?”  
“I told her pretty much everything. How we met and what we’ve been doing since…. She found it pretty amazing and said you must be something special and she can’t wait to meet you.”  
“Oh.”   
“How would you feel about going over to my mom’s house Friday afternoon and staying for dinner?”  
“Oh, uh…. Are you sure?”  
“Well, I’m pretty sure if you don’t go, she’ll come find you.”  
They found a place near the back of the ship and leaned against the railings. “Did you tell her the part about next week?”  
“Yeah.”  
“What did she say?”  
“That it’ll be good for me to go someplace new for fun and that she hopes I actually have fun.”  
“Well, I can say that I agree with her on that point.”  
“She also thinks you’re very pretty.” She cocked an eyebrow up at him. “I sent her a picture. And for the record, I agree with her.”  
She let out a laugh and shook her head. “I’m just going to say thank you.”  
He turned to her. “You don’t think you are?”  
“I think I’m nothing special.”  
“Is that your father talking?”  
She shrugged. “I don’t think so. Maybe. I just…. I don’t look in a mirror and go ‘yeah, you’re so hot’. Even after I spend time on my hair and makeup.”  
“You’re incredibly oblivious, then. You’re beautiful.” He reached out and pushed a strand of hair that was floating in the wind behind her ear. “Trust me.”  
She blushed and looked out at the water. “You’re crazy.”  
He laughed. “That’s beside the point.”  
The boat shifted under them and they were headed out onto the ocean. The wind was cold and Chris moved behind her to block her from it. She smiled to herself and watched the city get smaller as they moved out to the open ocean.   
“Why me?” She asked.  
“Why you what?” Chris asked, his mouth not far from her ear, causing his beard to tickle the skin there.  
“Let me rephrase. What is it about me that makes you so at ease? That made you want to take me out for dinner that night you knocked me down in dog shit?”  
“I don’t know. There was something in me that saw something in you and I asked you to dinner to see if I could figure out what it was. I’m still trying to figure it out, which I love. You’re like an adventure. But I was sweating bullets before I asked you out, remember?”  
“I didn’t even notice. I was kind of trying not to freak out that this actor I’ve thought was amazing since I saw him in ‘Cellular’ was sitting in my hotel room and talking to me and then asking me to dinner.”  
He laughed. “You saw ‘Cellular’, huh?”  
“And liked it. Personally, though, my favorite movie of yours is probably ‘Snowpiercer’. Oh, or ‘Sunshine.’ I loved that one, too.” She looked up at him. “You were incredible in those.”  
He blushed a bright red and she smiled. “Thank you. That means a lot, actually.” His arms came around her and he held her against his chest.  
“You’re welcome.” She snuggled back into him and looked out over the water. “So when are we going to see some whales?”  
“We might have to join the crowd up front.”  
“Oh.” They both leaned over together to look up the deck at the small crowd gathered on the bow. Behind them, a little boy about ten years old tapped Chris on the hip. Chris turned and looked down at him with a smile, letting Kate out of his embrace.  
“Are you Captain America?” The little boy asked.  
Chris knelt down to be eye level with him. “I sure am.”  
“I saw, um…. The Avengers…. And it was really good.”  
“That’s awesome, buddy.”  
“You’re my favorite, though. Don’t tell Iron Man, ok?”  
Chris smiled. “You got it. I won’t say a thing to him. What’s your name?”  
“Macon.”  
“It’s nice to meet you, Macon.” Chris shook his little hand.  
The little boy looked up at Kate. “Is she an Avenger, too?”  
“No. She’s a good friend of mine. She’s a superhero, too, though.”  
“Yeah?”  
“Yeah. Shh, don’t tell anyone, though. She’s kind of shy about it.”  
“Ok.” Macon looked up at her again. “I promise I won’t tell. Even if a bad guy asks me, I won’t tell him.”  
“Thank you.” She said sincerely.  
“What’s your name?”  
“Uh…. Captain Princess.”  
Macon laughed. “That’s funny.”  
She chuckled. “Yeah.”  
“You should join the Avengers if you’re a superhero, too. They’re the good guys.”  
“Cap, here, has been trying to get me to join for years. But if you think I should, maybe I’ll talk to Iron Man.”  
“Yeah!”  
“Macon?” A woman’s voice called from somewhere on the deck.  
“That’s my mom. I gotta go. Bye! I promise I won’t tell anyone you’re here.” Macon ran off to find his mother and Chris stood back up.  
He shot her an inquisitive look. “Captain Princess?”  
She blushed and shook her head. “It’s my niece’s superhero name. It was the first thing that popped in my head.”  
“Your niece has a superhero name?”  
“Yup. She has a cape and a mask and she runs around with the bow and arrow set I got her for her 2nd birthday. Well, Merida got it for her.” At his concerned look, she added, “It’s a kids toy. The arrows have suction cups, but she’s got scary good accuracy. I showed her how to shoot and in no time she was terrorizing their dog Abby with it.”  
Chris laughed, throwing his head back. “You taught your two year old niece to shoot a bow and arrow?” His right hand went to his chest as he continued to laugh.  
“I wasn’t going to give her a weapon without showing her how to use it. That’s irresponsible even if it is just a toy. And for the record, Merida showed her.”  
“Oh, Kat, you’re ridiculous.” He said it in such a way that it was the most endearing thing she’d ever heard. Then suddenly, his hands were cupping the sides of her face and his lips pressed to hers. She stiffened in surprise, but only for a moment before relaxing into it and placing her hands on his hips. When he pulled away a few seconds that felt like an hour later, they were both grinning. “Sorry. I hope that wasn’t too forward.”  
“No….” She cleared her throat. “No. That…. I…. Oh jeepers.” She sagged back against the railing, leaning on it for support. “That was better than I imagined it.”  
“So you’ve thought about it, too, huh?”  
She laughed and looked up at him. “Probably more than you.”  
There was a sudden commotion at the front of the boat and the boat slowed down to a stop. Camera shutters could be heard going off at a rapid rate. Chris and Kate exchanged looks and went up to see the whales. She snapped some photos with her Canon DSLR that she’d brought along and even stealthily took some of Chris watching the whales with a look that reminded her of a kid at an amusement park.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
When they got back on dry land, they headed to a Mexican restaurant for lunch. The two of them sat on the same side of the table. The booth seats weren’t huge, so they were close together. He wrapped an arm around her as she pulled out her camera to look at the pictures she’d taken.  
“You’re really good at taking pictures.” Chris remarked, munching on chips and salsa.  
“Thank you.”  
“You’ve got an eye for it.”  
“See this sequence of pictures?” She was referring to seven pictures she’d shot rapid fire of a humpback whale breeching. “I’ll probably make a panorama of it and get that framed.”  
“I want a copy of that if you do. That’ll be really cool.”  
“I can’t say the idea is mine. My sister in law did that for pictures she took of a whale from her cruise ship when she and my brother went to Alaska. I will say, though, that my sequence of pictures is better than hers.”  
“Oh shit! Look at that one!” He pointed to one she’d managed to get of the inside of a whale’s mouth. It had come up to feed on krill right next to where she’d been standing and she’d quickly snapped the picture. It looked like that whale was smiling big for the camera. “That’s so cool! I can’t wait to see that blown up!”  
“Your enthusiasm for my pictures is adorable.”  
“Do you have other pictures I can see?”  
“They’re on my laptop at the hotel.” She looked up at him and he was giving her puppy dog eyes. “Yes, you can see them. Though you’re not allowed to tell Casey you saw hers. For some reason she’s really embarrassed by them.”  
“Well, I won’t look at them if it embarrasses her.”  
“Just don’t tell her because I’m quite proud of them. They’re my first venture into actual portraits.”  
“Have you ever thought about being a photographer?”  
“Sometimes. But Richmond is full of talented photographers. It’s tough to break into the business. I just take pictures for fun and for my friends.” She sighed. “I completely forgot that I’m taking pictures for my friend Jessica and her sister Sarah next week.”  
“Oh, that’s ok. I can be your assistant. I think I’ve done enough shoots to know how to help you out.”  
She laughed. “Probably. I think I’m going to like watching you hold up my reflector and doing what I ask.”  
He shot her a devilish look. “Sounds like fun, mistress. I’m at your service.”  
She ducked her head to hide the blush. The food chose that moment to appear and Chris went over to the other side of the table to give themselves room to eat. The conversation was steady about photoshoots. The ones that she’d done and some of the ones he’s done over the years.  
“Have you ever been in front of the camera?” Chris asked as they left the restaurant and headed back to the car.  
“Uh, a few times, actually.”  
“I’m not talking school pictures or 90s Glamour Shots.”  
“I know. And while I’ve done the Glamour Shots thing, the answer is still the same.”  
“Can I see those, too?”  
She grinned up at him. “You’re a very curious man. Didn’t anyone ever warn you about what curiosity did to the cat?”  
That made him laugh. “I’m not a cat person, so I don’t really care.”  
“Good. I’m not a cat person, either. I’m allergic to them.”  
He slipped his hand in hers. “So, do you still want to see the Constitution?”  
“Of course! History buff, here. I’ll almost never turn down a chance to see something as cool as Old Ironsides.”  
“Then to Old Ironsides we go.”  
While they waited in line to go onto the ship, Kate looked up at Chris. “Can I cook for you tonight?”  
He smiled down at her. “Only if we can stop and get your laptop.”  
“I think we can arrange that.”  
“Cool. What will you be cooking tonight?”  
“Well, I’m sure we’ll have to go to the grocery store, so I’ll figure it out then.”  
“Nice.” His phone started ringing and he pulled it out of his pocket. “It’s Scott. Do you mind?”  
“Not at all.”  
“Hey.” Chris answered his phone. “Yeah, I’m with her now. Oh, well she’s actually planning on cooking tonight. Don’t know yet. Hold on.” He looked down at her. “Scott wanted to know if we wanted to go out with him this evening.”  
“Tell him to join us for dinner. I’ll cook for him, too.”  
“Are you sure?”  
“Yeah.”  
He smiled and turned back to the phone. “She says come over to my place tonight and she’ll cook for us. Great. Ok, yeah. We’ll see you later.” Chris hung up and stuck his phone back in his pocket. “He’s bringing a friend, if that’s ok.”  
“Yeah. I’ll just have to make sure to make enough food for everyone.”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
After they finished their visit to the USS Constitution, they went back to the hotel and got her laptop before heading to the same Whole Foods that Chris had stopped at. She decided to make Parmesan encrusted chicken, sautéed squash, and Ranch dinner bread. Simple to make, yet still delicious. Chris decided they needed dessert, so he picked up a fruit tart that looked almost too pretty to eat.  
He was now sitting at the island watching her work. Every now and then her tongue would peek out between her lips as she concentrated. Whenever a strand of hair fell out of her ponytail into her face, she would blow it away and roll her eyes when it fell right back. Her fingers were too covered in chicken goo to touch her hair, so Chris leaned over and brushed the strand behind her ear.  
“Thank you.” She said.  
“Anytime.”  
“Sorry I’m not talking much.”  
“It’s ok. I like watching you. You seem to really know your way around the kitchen.”  
“Well, I watched you yesterday, so I remembered where everything was.” She turned to the sink and started washing her hands.  
“I meant the way you seem to know when everything needs to get done.” He got up and stood behind her. “It’s like a finely choreographed routine. It’s like I’m watching you dance.” When she turned to dry her hands, he caught them in a hold position before twirling her out and pulling her back into a dip. She laughed as he set her back up right and pulled her into a hold again.  
“There’s no music.” She said.  
“Who needs it?” He began to sway, leading her, until the oven beeped letting them know the preheat was done. Before he let her go, he ducked his head down and kissed her. Her head swam for a moment and she grinned like an idiot. “Your lips are very soft.”  
“EOS lip balm.”  
He laughed. “I may have to switch from chapstick, then.”  
“Your lips aren’t rough.” She shoved the chicken breasts into the oven and shut the door. Chris leaned back against the counter and watched her expertly chop the yellow and green squash into slices and set them in a bowl before moving on to the onion.  
“How is that not making you cry?”  
“I stuck it in the freezer as soon as we got here. Cold onions don’t release the enzyme that makes you cry. Or, they do, but not as badly. The rest is taken care of by my contacts. They block what little onion enzyme there is from getting to me and making my eyes produce tears.”  
“That’s very…. Science-y.”  
Kate shrugged as she continued to chop. “My mom taught me that. She learned it when she was in Paris hanging out with this lady who taught her to make French onion soup. One day, mom is going to teach me how to make it because I love French food.”  
“Have you ever been to Paris?”  
“I’ve never been out of the country. And I’ve never made it past Lincoln, Nebraska. That’s the farthest west I’ve gone.”  
“What’s in Lincoln?”  
“A university. My school went on a field trip there once when I lived in Omaha.” She put the chopped onion with the sliced squash and pulled out a large pan from the cabinet.  
“What was the field trip for?”  
“I was in…. gosh…. Third or fourth grade at the time. The school I went to was a magnet school for math and science. Everything was super advanced there. I once made a working robot out of Legos and controlled it on a computer. They took us to show us the math and science department at the college and we spent the day learning college level science shit. I’m fairly certain it was also a recruitment trip.”  
“So you’re good at math and science?”  
“Oh god no!” She pulled out the loaf of French bread that they’d gotten and started cutting it in slices, stopping before she cut all the way through. “I find it hilarious that I even went to that school. Everything I enjoyed doing was art. I learned to play the violin there. And I was in Japanese class. I loved to design things on the computer. I’m great with computers.” She grabbed a stick of butter, cut it in sections, and stuck the sections in a small bowl before setting it in the microwave and turning it on.  
“Why did you go to the school?”  
“Uh, when we moved to Omaha, they made me take a test to see what level they should put me in and apparently I scored so high, they wanted to send me to the magnet school. I got accepted to it and my mom was so excited about it that she didn’t think twice about sending me. I did really good. I still appreciate science. Especially astronomy. I love looking at the stars and my brother was almost an astronaut.”  
“Really?”  
“Yeah.” She got the melted butter out and added a package of Ranch dressing mix to it. “It’s what he went to school for, but things kept getting in his way of becoming one.” Taking a basting brush, she brushed the butter and ranch mix in between the slices and all over the crust. “He trained for it a little bit. He went up in the Vomit Comet three times. He wanted to be on the first mission to Mars.”  
“What kind of things got in his way?”  
“His job, his mother killing herself, getting married, having a kid…. His wife Maura didn’t want to move either. She wants to stay with her stupid family and hold my brother back from accomplishing his dreams.”  
“Ooh, hostility.”  
“A little.” She wrapped the bread up in tin foil and put it in the oven with the chicken. “I hate her family. They’re ‘old Southern money’. Pft! Her mother decided that since Jan and I aren’t Killi’s biological sisters, we had no place in the family pictures when Killi and Maura got married. So there’re no pictures of the three of us together when he got married. And there’s only four pictures of him with our parents.”  
“That’s fucked up.”  
“Oh yeah. Maura’s mother is a stuck up bitch who constantly reminds my family that we’re trash compared to her family. But I don’t see Maura’s sister dressing up as a Scottish Highland princess in Georgia in June just to make her niece happy. Their version of that is throw some money at Hailey. Buy her things. Things fade and disappear. Memories like the ones I made for Hailey will last a lifetime. She tells her friends that Merida came to visit and shows them pictures of it. One day she’ll be old enough to realize it was me and it will make it that much more special to her that her aunt loves her that much.” She tossed the squash into the pan on the stove. “And they’re not really ‘old Southern money’, either. Maura’s grandfather is the one that invented that horrible electric fence for dogs. They made their fortune torturing dogs.” She glanced at Chris and saw he was watching her with a weird expression on his face. “Sorry. Hot button.”  
“No. It’s fine.”  
“What’s that look for then?”  
“I just…. I’m completely captivated by you. You’re…. Passionate.”  
“Vivacious.”  
“No. Vivacious isn’t always the nicest of endearments. Passionate is the right word for you. And it’s incredibly sexy.”   
He pulled on her hand and she was suddenly pressed completely against him. One of his hands found the small of her back and the other hand snaked its way up her back, fingers trailing along her spine, until his forearm was pressed firmly against her and his hand gripped the back of her neck. Her heart sped up as his lips met hers and made it clear that this wasn’t a chaste kiss like the last two.   
Her lips parted for him and he expertly teased her tongue with his. His beard tickled her where it brushed her skin and electric currents ran from his skin into hers, curling around every single nerve where they touched. Though it felt like the kiss went on for hours, it felt too soon when he pulled away. Her lips tried to form words, but nothing came out. Neither of them opened their eyes for a long moment. They just savored the feel of the other against them.  
“That was….” Her voice finally found itself, but words failed her still.  
“Passionate.” He said, finally opening his eyes. They were very, very blue as they peered into hers from centimeters away. His voice was husky and low. “You’re good at that.”  
She cleared her throat. “You’re better. I’m really glad you’re holding me because I’m not sure my legs work anymore.”  
He chuckled and she felt the vibrations of it against her. “I’m leaning against the counter for support.” After another moment, he released her slowly, making sure she had her feet solidly under her. “I don’t want you to burn the squash.”  
“I hadn’t turned it on yet.”  
“Good call.” He stood right behind her as she cut up half a stick of butter to put in with the squash. When she moved to the stove with a small bowl of sugar and a wooden spoon, he wrapped his arms around her waist and laid his cheek against the side of her head to watch her cook.  
That’s when the door opened and Scott burst into the room. “Something smells awesome!” He said.  
Chris reluctantly let her go and turned to greet his brother. “That would be Kat’s cooking.”  
“It’s nothing special.” Kate said, stirring the squash and adding a bit of sugar.  
“Hey Nina.” Chris said. “I didn’t know you were in town.”  
“I was in New York and decided to come up here for a couple of days.” Kate turned around to see Nina Dobrev releasing Chris from a hug.  
Scott came over and hugged Kate before lifting her face to inspect her mouth. “How’s your tooth?”  
“Uh, solid. Your dad did an awesome job.” Kate said, playfully swatting Scott away.  
“Oh, Kate, this is….”  
“Nina Dobrev. Yeah.” She reached out and shook Nina’s hand. “I’m a fan of ‘The Vampire Diaries’.”  
“It’s nice to meet you.” Nina said. “Scott told me all about you. Glad their dad got your tooth fixed up for you.”  
“Me too.”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
The conversation went smoothly over dinner. Everyone seemed impressed with Kate’s cooking. They especially loved the Ranch dinner bread. That was finished off quickly. Scott had brought two bottles of wine and those were finished off quickly as well. After dinner, Scott had decided it would be a good idea to go out for some fun. It was decided that karaoke at a local bar sounded like the most fun. They had a table near the back that still had a good view of everything. Their second round of drinks were on the table and Chris and Scott were up talking with the DJ about what songs he had and choosing which one they wanted to do.  
Nina leaned over to Kate. “Chris really likes you.”  
Kate blushed and smiled slightly. “Yeah?”   
“I’ve known him for a few years now and I don’t think I’ve ever seen him this at ease with someone.”  
“He’s said as much to me.”  
“Do you not believe him?”  
Kate glanced up at Chris. “Oh I believe him, it’s just really hard to wrap my head around.” Nina shrugged. “It’s not every day a person goes from being a fan to actually being with that person.”  
“No, but it’s happened. I will warn you, though, it’s not easy. Especially with someone as famous as Chris is. The paparazzi aren’t always the nicest people.”  
“Honestly, I haven’t even thought about it. I mean…. Well, I’m just trying to take it one day at a time. That’s gotten me through a lot in the past.”  
“It’s a good way to live. Enjoying the moments and experiencing life as it comes to you. Do you do yoga?”  
“I used to. Back in my figure skating days.”  
“You were a figure skater? That’s so cool!”  
“Yeah. Right up until I destroyed my knee when I was fourteen.”  
“Oh no! What happened?”  
When Chris and Scott came back, Nina and Kate were deep in conversation about Pilates and yoga and the benefits that it might have on Kate’s knee now. “I see you two are getting along great without us.” Chris said, sliding in next to Kate.  
“Kat’s really awesome.” Nina said. “You know how to pick them, Evans.”  
“Thanks!”  
“What song did you pick?” Kate asked him.  
“I thought you and I could do a duet. I picked ‘Don’t You Want Me’. Classic 80s.”  
“What?” She glanced at the stage. “You want me to go up there?”  
“I did not peg you for someone with stage fright, Kitty Monroe.” Scott said, referring to her burlesque name.  
“Well, it’s real.”  
“How!? You get up and dance and take your clothes off in front of people.”  
“Wait, what?” Nina asked.  
“Me singing is a whole different beast.” Kate insisted. “I’ve done musicals, but those don’t count as me singing. That was my character singing. I haven’t sang in front of people since high school and I’m not sure it exactly counted because it was at church in front of little old ladies who would never tell you if you sucked or not because ‘you’re wonderful no matter what you do, dearie’.”  
“We can be the little old ladies.” Scott offered.   
“You’re not going to suck.” Chris said. “I’ve heard you sing.”  
“To my niece. Who doesn’t care if I can sing or not.”  
Scott waved over a waitress. “We’re going to need some limes, eight shots of your best tequila, and another round of drinks.”  
“Oh god! Tequila?”  
Scott laughed. “Tequila makes everything more fun.”  
“You know the song ‘Tequila Makes Her Clothes Come Off’?” Scott nodded. “Well, it’s true. At least in my case.”  
“All the better for my brother, then.”  
“Scott!” Chris yelled. “Oh my god, dude!” Scott just smiled wickedly at them and waggled his eyebrows.  
“Can we go back to the part about dancing and taking your clothes off on stage?” Nina asked. “Are you a stripper?”  
“She’s a burlesque performer.” Scott said.  
“No! Really?”  
Kate nodded. “Yeah. I’ve been performing around Richmond and DC for a little over two years now.”  
“How does someone get into that?”  
“Well, there’s a school in Richmond. A friend of mine runs it. I went to a burlesque show and fell in love with it. I went through a few months of debating whether or not I wanted to give it a try. I kind of freaked out about it. My friend Lara and I were supposed to sign up together, but I chickened out. I ended up signing up for the next six week course and I haven’t regretted it for a moment.”  
“That would be awesome to see sometime. Do you have those pretty feather fans?”  
“I just got my first pair earlier this year. I did a Katniss Everdeen routine with them to ‘Yellow Flicker Beat’ for a movie show.”  
“Cool! How many routines do you have?”  
“Uh…. I don’t know. Ten maybe? I’ve been working on a Peggy Carter one for a Marvel show a friend of mine is putting together.” Kate looked up at Chris. “My friend Em and her friend Zhora are doing a routine of Captain America battling the Winter Soldier.”  
“I would love to go to that show.” Chris said. “You have to let me know when it is.”  
“I’m not sure they would be able to handle Captain America himself sitting in the audience. And I might be the most shy of them all if I know you’re there.”  
Scott grabbed Nina. “Come help me sing.” He pulled her out of the booth and up to the stage.  
Chris looked over at her and the look he gave her made everything inside her tighten and her face flush with heat. “Maybe you could rehearse beforehand. And maybe I could be there to give you some helpful tips?”  
“I think I wouldn’t remember anything if it was just you I was performing for.”  
He smirked moving his face a little closer to hers. “What if I took one piece of my clothing off for each piece of yours?”  
“Is that the tequila talking?”  
“It takes a lot more than a couple of tequila shots and three beers to get me drunk.”  
“Me too. But I think it was enough to loosen your tongue.”  
“Maybe a little.” He took her hand and held it between his against his chest. “I won’t push you if you’re not comfortable, ok? I want you to feel comfortable and safe with me.”  
“I’ll let you know if you push too hard. Right now, I’m ok.” She closed the distance between their lips and kissed him.


	5. Chapter 5

Kate woke up and didn’t know where she was at first. Then she rolled over and smiled. She was in Chris’s bedroom and he was lightly snoring next to her with a blissful look on his face. They had come back to his apartment after the karaoke fun at the bar and they’d both been tipsy enough to fall into bed together. There hadn’t been any sex, but there had been plenty of making out and a few runs to second base and almost one to third.  
Trying not to wake him, she slipped out of the king sized bed and padded to the bathroom. He had given her a T-shirt of his to wear to bed, but her breasts stretched it out in the chest area. While it had been a little aggravating to her, Chris had seemed excited about it, swearing that he didn’t care how stretched the shirt got because she looked sexy in it. She shook her head as she washed her hands. She would never understand the sexy part of it all.  
He lifted his head when she opened the bathroom door and she giggled at his hair sticking in all different directions. Hers wasn’t that much better, but she had the weight from the length to at least hold the strands down somewhat. He turned over onto his back and pulled her against him as she slipped back in bed, settling her head on his bare chest.  
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you up.” She said.  
“It’s ok.” He kissed the top of her head. “Did you sleep ok?”  
“Yeah. This mattress is the bee’s knees.”  
She felt the rumble of his chuckle under her cheek. “We’ve got a game to go to tonight.”  
“I know. I’m really excited.”  
“We’ve got to get you in that lucky jersey.”  
“Right now, I don’t want to leave this spot. You’re comfy.” He chuckled again and she looked up at him. “Thank you for not pushing last night.”  
“I told you I want you to be completely comfortable with me.”  
“I know. But I also know it wasn’t easy to restrain yourself. Things got heated and most guys would just keep going until the girl gave in, but you respected my boundaries and that means a lot to me.”  
His hand came up and brushed some of her hair away from her face. “If you say ‘stop’ then I’ll stop. I’m not most guys.”  
“Well, I said stop because we’d both had enough drinks that I wasn’t sure if either of us would be in the right frame of mind for anything more than making out. I didn’t want to take advantage of you or the other way around. If it happened, I wanted it to be when we’re both sober and able to make good decisions.” He looked at her curiously. “Ok, what I’m saying with that long winded and kinda weird logic speech is that…. Well, I won’t say stop this morning if you wanted to….”  
“Are you sure?”  
She nodded, suddenly not able to talk because of the look in his eyes. It made her insides feel like boiling water.  
Chris took her hand lying on his chest and brought her fingertips to his lips, kissing each one tenderly. He turned onto his side and she turned to lay on her back, watching him. He ran his fingers up one thigh, over her hip, and pushed the shirt up above her navel. Her breath caught when he deftly dipped his head down to her stomach, kissing and nipping all over her exposed skin. His fingers ran up and down her ribs and he kissed his way around her naval. He slid his hands up and the shirt slipped over her breasts and she raised her arms to help him take it off.  
She watched him stare in wonder at her breasts. It almost made her self-conscious, but he’d done the same thing last night. His mouth found one of her nipples and she gasped. His tongue worked in circles around one breast while he kneaded the other gently with his other hand. Her hands found his hair and she ran her fingers through it, continuing one hand down his back as far as it would go. His muscles rippled under his skin as he moved himself above her. She let out a moan when his mouth moved to her other breast. His beard tickled and left a tingling sensation where it chaffed against her. Then his mouth was moving up her chest to her collarbone where he took his time kissing, licking, and biting from one side to the other.  
Finally he moved his lips up to her neck and she dug her nails into his back. He’d discovered the night before that nothing turned her on more than his mouth on her neck. She let out strangled gasps when he would bite down. She was sure that she’d have hickies from it.   
While his mouth played with her neck, one of his hands snaked down her body and lifted one of her thighs against him. She could feel how hard he was pressing between her legs and pushed her hips into it. He growled and bit down on her earlobe before pushing his lips against hers. Their tongues battled for dominance and she moved her other leg up to his hips and squeezed tight as she suddenly bucked and rolled him on his back.  
He laughed as she began to return every single thing he’d done to her. Her long blonde hair tickled his ribs as it trailed up and down with her movements. Just above his sweatpants, she could see the cuts of his Adonis belt that drove her wild. She’d actually dreamt about running her tongue over those cuts when she saw shirtless pictures of Chris before she’d met him. Now her dream was a reality as she dipped her head and did just that. A moan escaped his lips and it made her smile that she was the cause of it.  
She looked up his body at him and his blue eyes were watching her intently. She didn’t break eye contact as she hooked her fingers in the waistband of his pants and pulled them down. He sprung free and she chucked the pants to the side, wrapping one fist around him. He hissed when her mouth found his head and she began to lick and stroke him. His hips bucked and she slid him further into her mouth, obliging him as she hummed on and off. His fingers wrapped in her hair and she pushed him deeper into her throat, fighting the gag reflex. He was longer than anyone else she’d been with, but she would be damned if anything ruined this moment.  
His breathing became ragged and his grip tightened on her hair. “Kat…. Baby, stop before you make me cum.” She pulled her lips away and looked up to see his expression. He looked blissful with his eyes closed and his mouth open as he took deep breaths to calm himself down. “Jesus, where did you learn that?”  
Kate shrugged. “Cosmo magazine and practice?”  
He laughed and sat up. “Fuck you’re incredible.” His lips caught hers and he pulled her on top of him. After a long moment, he rolled them so he was on top again and began licking, kissing, and biting his way down from her lips to her hips. It was torturously slow, but every second of it was making her wetter. Finally, he stripped her underwear off and dropped them to the floor. He spent several long minutes on each thigh, avoiding the place she wanted his mouth the most. Here he didn’t hesitate to leave marks on her skin. His teeth left indentations and she could feel the bruises forming.   
The pain mixed perfectly with the pleasure, though. As his mouth worked on her inner thighs, one of his fingers moved to her opening and slid in, curling upwards and stroking inside her. She let out a loud moan and her head fell back on the pillow. She felt him grin against her thigh and he added another finger, pumping in and out as he curled them upward. Finally he moved his mouth over her clit and her back arched up. He used tongue and teeth in sync with his fingers to send her over the cliff once, twice, three times before he began kissing his way back up her body.  
She was still trembling when he made it up to her mouth. “You ok?” He asked.  
“I’m sorry, I seemed to have forgotten most of my basic information.” She said, cracking open one eye. “Please try again later.”  
Chris laughed and kissed her. “Need a minute?” Her chest heaved nervously as she shook her head. “Good.”   
A moment later, she felt him press against her opening and she opened her legs wider for him. He pushed into her slowly and her nails dug into his biceps. She wrapped her legs around his thighs and urged him on. He kept up an even pace, pushing as far into her as he could get before withdrawing slowly, rolling his hips with every motion. He kissed her just as slowly, languishing in the feel of her wherever he could.  
A fine sheen of sweat appeared on his body and the salt from it invaded her taste buds. “Don’t hold back, Chris. You won’t break me.”  
“I want to savor this.” He said, but his pace was already beginning to quicken.  
“Let me help with that.” She pushed him over and rolled on top of him.   
Straddling him, she slid him back inside of her and started to move. Her pace was quicker, but not punishing. Her hair tickled his thighs when she would throw her head back. She enjoyed watching the faces he made and the feel of his hands touching everywhere he could reach her. Eventually they settled on her hips and he helped her move up and down against him. Suddenly, she fell down against him as she cried out. Her orgasm had snuck up on her and Chris held her tightly to him as she rode it out.  
He moved out from under her, leaving her laying on her stomach as he kneeled behind her. His hands ran up and down her back as his lips made their way up her spine. He moved her hair to the side so he could concentrate on her neck. His teeth left marks on her shoulder just above one of her tattoos. When he thought she was ready for more, he gently grabbed her hips and pulled them upwards. She indulged him and got on all fours, leaning her weight on her forearms and giving him a beautiful view of her backside.  
Kate watched Chris over her shoulder as he took a moment to savor the whole picture. She had a nice, round ass that completed the hourglass figure of her body. He desperately wanted to spank her, but he was worried that was too much too soon. He settled on kneading each round in his hands and watching her react to it. Her skin was flushed and he could see the marks he’d left on her. He swelled with manly pride and moved closer to her. She moved her hips back against him and he entered her from behind. Not holding back this time, he pounded into her. They both groaned and grunted and one corner of his fitted sheet popped off as she balled the fabric in her hand.  
“I’m so close, baby.” He said. She fluttered and seized around him and he couldn’t stop himself from finishing right behind her. They both held as still as possible, but their bodies still spasmed from their orgasms. Finally they both collapsed back down onto the bed, Kate spooning her back against his chest. He wrapped an arm around her and held her tightly against him.   
She loved the tickling feeling of his beard on her shoulder. “That was….”  
“Amazing.” Chris finished for her.  
“Yeah. That works.”  
“What were you going to say?”  
“I don’t even know. My brain stopped working a while back.”  
His laugh rumbled against her back. “Let’s get some rest, maybe do that one more time, and then take a shower and get you back to the hotel so we can get that lucky jersey and get to the game.”  
“Sounds like a plan.” She stifled a yawn and snuggled closer to him.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Chris sat in the living area of Kate’s hotel room flipping through pictures on her laptop. They’d brought it with them since he hadn’t been able to look at anything the night before. She was in the bathroom brushing out her hair and putting on some makeup. There were a couple of noticeable hickies peeking out from her jersey, so she grabbed a white turtleneck from her bag and tossed that on.  
“Kat, these pictures are really good.” Chris said.  
“Thank you.” She said, walking into the room and sat down next to him to put her boots on.  
“I mean, really good. The angles are perfect. And this one,” He brought up one of her friends’ engagement boudoir sessions and chose the one of her lying on her stomach in bed laughing. “She just looks so happy.”  
“Because she was happy. Her boyfriend had finally popped the question after waiting eight years.”  
“But you captured that moment. It’s stunning.”  
“That’s her favorite picture out of the bunch.”  
“Kat, you should show these to somebody.”  
“Who would I show them to? I really only take pictures of my friends. The wedding that I did was for someone who remembered me from high school while I had no idea who she was. Because my memory sucks from that time period. I don’t think those are my best because I didn’t know them.”  
“No. Those pictures were great. I love the one with the groomsmen looking at the groom’s ring and freaking out.”  
“They were real sports. Up for anything I wanted to do. The bride and bridesmaids were all stressed and grumpy. It was hard to get them to do much beyond smile.”  
“That makes these pictures even better.”  
“Well, there’s not been much call for pictures lately.” Kate stood up and went to find her coat.   
While she was gone, Chris emailed himself a few of the pictures with intentions to show them to some photographer friends of his he’d made over the years. “Hey, where are your modeling pictures?”  
She came back, coat in hand, and sat back down. He watched as she scrolled through a bunch of picture folders until she came to one that said “Me”. She clicked on it and sat back to let him look at them. There were multiple folders, each labeled with the photographer’s name and a date. He clicked through them, making comments about a few of them.  
“You’re so beautiful.” He said as he finished one set and moved on to another.  
“Maybe one day I’ll believe you.”  
“I hope so…. Oh! Wow!” He’d found her boudoir session.  
“The photographer is a friend of mine. She had a masters in psychology, but decided she’d rather take pictures for a living. She’s absolutely amazing. She’s won a bunch of photography awards. She convinced me to do this session. She said it would be a form of therapy for me. That I might find some confidence that I needed.”  
“Did it work?”  
Kate shrugged. “I was so self-conscious through it. I was especially embarrassed about my body and my looks. Then she showed me the pictures and I didn’t recognize the woman looking back at me. She was so confident and…. Powerful.”  
He pointed at one of her sitting on a bed, leaning forward, and looking directly at the camera. Everything in her eyes and face showed someone who was ridiculously confident and fierce. “That’s the woman that I see when I look at you. Strong, beautiful, sexy as hell. You should be proud of these pictures.”  
“Oh, I am. It took a lot for me to do those. They helped me decide to give burlesque a try. Most people do these photos for a significant other. I did them for me and I usually don’t show anyone else.”  
“Thank you for letting me see them.”  
She shrugged. “Well, you’ve seen me naked and you didn’t run for the hills. So I didn’t think these would scare you off.”  
He smirked. “Well, there’s an off involved, but it doesn’t have anything to do with fear.”  
Kate laughed. “Oh my god! You couldn’t possibly be up for another round! You’ve gone three today already.”  
“What can I say? You’ve created a monster.” He set the laptop aside and leaned over to her, nipping at her earlobe. “I just want to spend my days making you….” She let out a moan when he moved her turtleneck down and nipped just under her ear.  
“Chris, we’ve got a game to go to.”  
“Then I’ll make it quick.”  
“You’re like a horny teenager.”  
“It’s your fault.” He got the button on her jeans open and she scooted down some to give him better access. “Shit, you’re wet.”  
“It’s your fault,” She breathed as his mouth caught hers.   
He slid his fingers inside her and she let out a breathy moan into his mouth. While he worked her over with one hand, his other hand was undoing his belt and fly. She reached over to help him and eventually they got his jeans half way down his thighs. Kate stood up and moved her jeans to the same area and sat on Chris’ lap, easing him inside of her from behind. She leaned back on his chest as they began to move. His hand found her clit and she let out a cry as the sensations started to overwhelm her. His mouth found hers and they groaned into each other as the pace quickened.   
“I’m close.” She said.  
Chris wrapped his free arm around her and held her in place as he moved his hips, thrusting into her as he brutally flicked her clit. She felt her orgasm slam into her and then another right behind it as he continued to thrust and flick. Just as she was coming down from hers, he came, too, jerking inside of her until the sensations subsided. The two of them sat there, boneless and panting, until their heart rates slowed down.  
“Four.” He said into her ear.  
She laughed and moved off of him, adjusting her jeans back on her hips. “Are you trying to beat the world record?”  
“Maybe.” He chuckled. “I’ve wanted you since I first saw you. I’ve only got these two weeks with you and….”  
Kate looked at him sharply. “What do you mean?”  
“I’ve only got these two weeks with you and then I go to Savannah to finish filming for at least two months.”  
“What happened to seeing where this goes? Am I just a fling?”  
Chris looked confused for a moment, but then his face brightened. “Oh! No! No! God no!” He fixed his pants quickly. “Kat, no, you are not a fling. Not by a long shot. I’m not saying we only have these two weeks together and that’s it. I’m saying I won’t be able to touch you for two months and I want to be able to stockpile before then. And I do want to see where this goes. I’ve never cared about someone so deeply and so quickly before. And I think you feel that way, too.”  
“We’ve only known each other for four and a half days. Long distance relationships are hard enough when you’ve known the person for a few years let alone a few days. How do you know two months apart won’t kill us?”  
“Because I have hope. Yes, long distance is hard, but it’s doable. Especially in today’s society. We can video chat and text and talk on the phone. You could come visit the set on weekends. You said you get weekends off, right? I could fly you down on a Friday after you finished work and you could fly back on Sunday evening. It doesn’t have to be every weekend if you don’t want. I know you’ve got friends and a life to live.”  
“You shouldn’t spend so much money on me.”  
“Why?”  
“Because you shouldn’t.”  
“Can I be the judge of what I spend my money on? If I want to buy you a plane ticket to come to Savannah to be with me for a couple of days, then I will. You’re not taking advantage of me, if that’s what you think. I’m offering this to you. I’m offering this as a solution to how we can make this work.”  
“We’ve still got a week and two days before I tell you if this is going anywhere.” She looked at him coyly and he chuckled.  
“Kat, something tells me that everything we’ve done today is not something you do with someone you don’t care for on a deeper level.”  
She shrugged. “It’s not.” Kate took his hand and played with his fingers. “You know, you’re as wonderful as I had you made out in my mind to be.”  
“Yeah?”  
“Yes. Don’t burst my bubble.”  
Chris pulled her to him and kissed her. “I will do my absolute best.” He looked at his watch. “Shit. We’ve got to go.”  
“We’ve got a game to win!” She leaned over and kissed him before jumping up.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*   
“These seats are amazing!” Chris said over the roar of the crowd. The game hadn’t begun yet, but the teams had gone on the field already. They were sitting on the Patriots side about ten rows back from the sideline at about the 30 yard line.  
“I had to take out a 401k loan to afford them, but they’re totally worth it!” Kate said. She looked around. “Are you ok down here? I know you’re not the biggest fan of crowds.”  
“I’m great.” He grinned at her. “I’m surrounded by my people and I’ve got my girl at my side. I couldn’t be better.”  
She blushed and looked down at her lap. “Four days and I’m your girl, huh?”  
“I doubt I’ll be looking at anyone for a very long time, if not ever again.”  
“Chris!”  
“What?”  
“If ever? Really?”  
“I’m not ruling out the possibility. Like I said, I’m not proposing, but I want to see where this goes.”  
“That’s going a long, long, long way.”  
“Maybe. I kind of hope so.” He took her hand and gave her one of those knee melting smiles.  
“Ok, and how do we deal with your life in front of the cameras and mine completely away from any kind of limelight?”  
“You’re not completely away from any kind of limelight. You’re a burlesque performer. People know your stage persona, I’m sure.”  
“It’s completely different than your situation. You walk red carpets and make blockbusters. I get up on a tiny little stage in a bedazzled costume and take my clothes off to music.”  
“You inspire people. You’ve told me that you’ve had people come up to you and say that they want to do burlesque because you inspired them. They wanted to be brave like you and get up on that stage, too. And some of them have even done it. You’re braver than I am. I would never have the guts to get up and do that.”  
“And what will your fans think when they find out Captain America is dating a nobody burlesque performer?”  
“You’re so much more than that, Kat.”  
The roar of the crowd drowned out anything she would’ve said to that. The teams were taking the field to begin the game. Kate looked up at Chris as he made noise for the Patriots and shook her head. Was she really falling for this man?


	6. Chapter 6

Kate looked at herself in the mirror for the thousandth time. She was wearing a deep green, boat-neck, sweater dress that stopped just above her knees, grey leggings, and brown suede, knee high boots. She’d thrown the top half of her hair up and pinned it back in a messy, but classy style. Chris would be at her hotel room soon. He’d stayed at the hotel with her that night, but he’d gone home to change clothes. Kate had wanted to stay and get ready and prepare herself as best she could for meeting his mother.  
Her phone started ringing and she grabbed it off the bed. It was her brother. “Hey Killi.”  
“Hey Kat. How’s it going?”  
“It’s going great.”  
“Did you enjoy the game yesterday?”  
“Yeah! We beat the Dolphins, I had great seats, I was surrounded by fellow fans, and I had a great date with my Boston boy.”  
“Yeah. I saw.”  
“I’m sorry. You saw?”  
“This Boston boy that you mentioned? Yeah, you forgot to mention it was Chris Evans.”  
“How do you know that?”  
“Because your picture is on the internet. You’re famous, kid.”  
“What does it say?” She was already scrambling to open up her laptop.  
“The one from Yahoo that I clicked on said ‘Chris Evans goes to Patriots game with mystery woman.’”  
“That’s not terrible.”  
“Then it says ‘the two were seen cuddling and kissing throughout the game.’”  
“Oh dear.”  
“Plus Facebook and Tumblr are covered with the pictures. So, is it serious?”  
“Um….”  
“You’ve only known him a few days.”  
“I know!”  
“How can it be serious?”  
“I don’t know! He’s just…. He’s amazing.”  
“Kid, you’ve been in love with Captain America since you were in college. You sure you don’t have rose colored glasses on?”  
“Ok, one: He wasn’t Captain America when I first saw him. And two: no rose colored glasses. I’ve given him so many outs and he doesn’t take them.”  
“Ok, so did you stalk him or….”  
“No! God no! I was reading in the park and when I stood up, I wasn’t paying attention and I ran smack into him. I bounced off him so hard that I fell and it was straight down into dog poop.” She smiled to herself. “He gave me his jacket and walked me back to the hotel and the conversation was nice. He asked me out for dinner to apologize for the dog poop and we just…. Hit it off. I’m supposed to be meeting his mother today and he’s supposed to be coming to Richmond with me tomorrow.”  
“That sounds serious if you’re meeting his mother.”  
“He wants me to come visit him on set while he’s filming in Atlanta.”  
“That definitely sounds serious. How do you feel about him? Really? Beyond the idolization?”  
“Killi, he really is as wonderful as I thought. He listens to everything and he remembers. He makes me feel warm and cared for. I haven’t felt this way with any other guy. And he takes things slow so I never feel uncomfortable. It’s like he knows what pace I need to go at.”  
“Good. That’s good.”  
“Why do I hear a ‘but’ in your voice?”  
“Because there is one.”  
She sat down on the edge of the bed. “Well, what’s the ‘but’?”  
“The ‘but’ is but do you feel you could handle the kind of relationship he has to offer? He’s going to be gone a lot. And then there’s the news stories. People are going to want to know about you. You’ve seen how the paparazzi have no boundaries. Do you think fame is something you’re ready for?”  
“I don’t know. I guess that’s something I’ll have to find out.”  
“But if you get in too deep with him and you’re miserable with the celebrity part of it, what will you do?”  
“I don’t know. These are all what ifs that are in the future.”  
“Not really. You made the Yahoo homepage, kid. It’s only a matter of time before they find out who you are.”  
“Has mom seen this?”  
“You know that mom is computer illiterate. She can barely use her phone, let alone the Yahoo homepage. I’m sure your phone would’ve been filled with texts and calls from her if she had. But you better tell her soon. Especially if he’s coming home with you.”  
“I planned on it.”  
“When?”  
“When I walked through the door with him.” There was a knock on her door. “He’s here. I’ve got to go.” She made her way to the door.  
“Good luck, kid.”  
Kate smiled at Chris as she said, “Thanks, Killi. I’ll probably need it. Do me a favor?”  
“Depends.”  
“Dude, you owe me. I’ve babysat your kid for free.”  
“That’s because she’s your niece and you love her.”  
“I know that. Ok, do it because you’re my brother and you love me.”  
“Fine. What’s the favor?”  
“Call mom and see if you can head her off or something? Keep her away from computers and…. You know…. People.”  
“Why don’t I just give you the moon? Would that suffice?”  
“Kiss my ass.”  
“Not enough time in the day.”  
“Piss off.”  
“Love you, too. I’ll see what I can do from Georgia.”  
“Thanks. Bye Killi.” She hung up and rolled her eyes at the phone. “Brothers. Can’t live with em, can’t live without em.” Kate looked at Chris. “So, apparently we’re all over the internet.”  
“Yeah.” Chris said. “I’m really sorry. My manager called this morning and had about two thousand questions. I was sure we had a lot more time before people noticed.”  
“Killi saw it on Yahoo this morning.” She led Chris back into the bedroom and turned her laptop around. “You can’t see my face very good, so there’s that.”  
Chris cringed. “I’m really sorry, Kat.”  
“This isn’t your fault.”  
“No, but this isn’t fair to you. People are going to pry and the press can be kind of vicious. I really didn’t plan on the press finding out until we were both good and ready for that. I don’t want anyone to be mean to you.”  
She shrugged. “I wouldn’t have survived high school if I was worried about what other people think of me. Or college for that matter. Let them be mean. Negative things people say about others usually reflects insecurities about themselves. And besides,” She walked over to him and took his hands. “If this thing between us is something more…. Something that could last a long time, as you’ve put it…. The fame thing is just one part of you. It’s not the whole of you.”  
“It’s a pretty big part right now.”  
“Well, the good thing is that for right now, they don’t know who I am. That buys us some time, right? I’m not exactly a huge web presence. I barely use my Twitter account. I have my Facebook security settings so you can only be a friend of a friend to find me. My burlesque page is under a different name and I don’t look like myself with all that makeup on. So, I think we’re ok for a little while.”  
“You’re very confident.”  
“Roll with it.” He chuckled. “We’ll be at your mother’s today where no one will bother us and tomorrow we’re flying to Richmond. No one who might tip the press off knows that you’ll be there. My friends won’t rat us out once they find out. My family won’t rat us out. So this is not something we’ll have to deal with in the immediate future.”  
He shook his head. “I just…. I know you don’t care what people think about you, but I don’t know if I would like it very much if people said mean things about you.”  
“Would what anyone said make a difference in how you see me?”  
“Of course not.”  
“Then why worry about it?”  
He looked uncertain still, but smiled at her. “You’ve got an answer for everything, don’t you?”  
“It’s a curse.” She wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her chin on his chest, looking up at him. He smiled and kissed her gently. “Besides, there’s nothing they can say that I haven’t heard before. My ass is too big, my waist is too big, my thighs touch, my boobs are a little saggy, my arms jiggle when I wave….” Kate shrugged. “Nothing new. I discovered all of that on my own a long time ago.”  
“Your ass isn’t too big.” His hands drifted down to the body part in question. “It fits great in my hands with some extra to play with.” He slid his hands up and settled on her waist. “Your waist isn’t too big. It’s firm and powerful and I think it goes along nicely with how you’re shaped.” One hand snuck down to her thigh and pulled it up against his hip. “As for your thighs, I read somewhere that women with thigh gaps aren’t as tight down there as women whose thighs touch. I like the way you feel on me.” He released her thigh and his hands moved up to her chest. “Your boobs aren’t saggy, they’re just heavy because they’re larger.” He reluctantly let her breasts go and took her hands again. “And my arm jiggles too when I wave.” He demonstrated for her and she laughed at the tiny jiggle that he was forcing to happen. She stopped his waving and kissed his large bicep.  
“See? You found positives in all those negatives. I think if anyone says anything bad about me, you’re good.” She bumped her forehead against his chest playfully.  
He wove his fingers into her hair and cupped the back of her skull with both hands. “You’re making it easy to be your boyfriend.”  
“It won’t always be like that, sadly. I’ll have my moments.”  
He shrugged. “So will I. It’s a natural thing.” His lips met hers and they both smiled. “Ok, let’s get this show on the road. You ready to meet the family?”  
She straightened her back and took a deep breath. “As I’ll ever be.”  
“Don’t be nervous. They’re going to love you.”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Kate sat at the kitchen table while Lisa moved around the kitchen making dinner. Chris was in the living room with Scott playing with one of their nephews. Carly was out back with Shanna watching the other kids bounce on a trampoline. Kate had offered to help cook, but Lisa hadn’t heard of it.  
“He never brings girls home. Usually he fights me when I ask to meet them. Makes up all kinds of excuses.” Lisa said, pausing in her stirring to look over at Kate. “The last one was…. Minka, I think. But that was a long time ago. It took him a while to actually bring her home. You’re something special.”  
Kate blushed. “He certainly does his best to make me feel special.”  
“Good. I’d have to beat him if he wasn’t.” Lisa grinned wickedly and went back to stirring.  
“Are you sure there’s nothing I can’t do, Mrs. Evans? I really don’t mind.”  
“The only things I want you to do are to call me Lisa and for you to sit here and talk with me. Tell me about you.”  
“Ok. I’m an open book. Ask me anything.”  
“You said you’re from Virginia?”  
“Well, I live in Virginia now. I’m from Kentucky.”  
“Oh, that’s right, he did mention that. I’ve never been to Kentucky. I’ve heard it’s beautiful.”  
“It really is.”  
Lisa finished what she was doing and joined Kate at the table. “I’ve always wanted to go to the Kentucky Derby. That seems like a lot of fun. Have you ever been?”  
“Yes, ma’am, I have. I’ve gone a couple of times. The best part isn’t the horse race because that lasts all of, like, two minutes. The best part is drinking mint juleps and checking out everyone’s hats.”  
“Did you wear big crazy hats when you went?”  
“I did. The first time I went, it wasn’t long after ‘Titanic’ had been released, so I got a hat that looked just like Rose’s big purple one when she gets out of the car. The second time I went, the hat wasn’t as crazy. It was just a big white sun hat that I attached some fake stargazer lilies to.”  
“So, what brought you from Kentucky to Virginia?”  
“Well, my mom wanted a change and she took a job in Omaha, Nebraska. We lived up there for a few years and then my parents got divorced and my mom moved my sister and I to Virginia so she could be closer to her brother that worked at Fort Lee.”  
The sound of a herd of elephants could be heard running up the hallway before Scott, Chris, and the boys came running across the kitchen towards the back door. “Stop running!” Lisa called. They all instantly did as she asked, but as soon as the door opened, they resumed running. Chris held back and came over to stand next to Kate.  
“Everything good in here?” He asked. “You’re not being too hard on her, ma, are you?”  
“Of course I’m not! She’s a really lovely woman, Chris.”  
Chris looked at Kate with a smirk. “She’s ok.” He said nonchalantly with a shrug, leaning down to kiss her cheek. Scott called for Chris from outside and Chris grinned, heading outside.  
“He’s like a big kid.” Kate said, watching Chris climb on the trampoline.  
“It’s something about being home with the kids that reverts him back to his childhood.” Lisa said.  
“Oh, I understand that. My niece has the ability to make me play with Barbies and I never did that as a kid.”  
“You didn’t play with Barbies? Why not?”  
Kate shrugged. “I was surrounded by boys. I spent more time climbing trees and trying to keep up with them. I did have some Barbies. My granny used to buy the Holiday Barbies that come out every year for me. And I had some Disney princess Barbies. But I didn’t play with them.”  
“Are you a Disney fan?”  
“Oh my god, yes! I love all things Disney. One day I’ll get to Disneyworld. Maybe I should use my second plane ticket for that.”  
“You’ve never been?”  
“Long story, but no, I’ve never been.”  
“Oh, Kate, you should come with us in December. We go every year for Christmas.”  
“Oh, I couldn’t impose on your family vacation, Lisa.”  
“You wouldn’t be imposing. I’m inviting you. We go for a few days in the first or second week of December. I would love it if you could come this year. I’m sure Chris would be excited too.”  
“I’ll have to check my schedule at work, but I’ve still got another week of time off to take before the end of the year.”  
Lisa smiled brightly. “I hope you can come. I’d love to spend more time with you.”  
Chris came in just then, limping slightly. “What did you do?” Kate asked, getting up and helping him to her vacated seat.  
“Fell off the trampoline.” Chris said, wincing as she moved a chair over, sat down in it, put his leg in her lap, and lifted the leg of his jeans.  
“I’ll get the first aid kit.” Lisa said.  
Chris watched her go for a moment before turning to Kate. “Am I going to live, doc?”  
“I don’t know. This cut’s pretty deep. We may have to amputate.” Kate joked as she dabbed at his leg with a paper napkin from the table.  
“I’ll have to get myself a parrot to go with my new peg leg.”  
“As long as you wear one of those billowy pirate shirts, I won’t mind the bird.”  
He reached over and cupped her face in one of his hands. “How is it going with ma, really?”  
“It’s going great, honestly. She just invited me to Disneyworld for your annual Christmas visit.”  
Chris’s eyes bugged. “Wow. She really likes you. She’s never invited any of my girlfriends to Disney.”  
“I think she feels bad that I’ve never been. That’s all.”  
“Trust me, babe, that’s not all.”   
Lisa walked back in with the first aid kit. “Chris, you’re going to bleed all over her.”  
“She’s got it under control. So, you invited her to Disney this year, huh?”  
“Of course I did. You two won’t get to see each other much and I thought you might like it if we included her on the trip. Especially since she’s never been.”  
“That was nice of you, ma. Really.”  
Lisa looked between them and smiled. “Well, she makes my son happy. Happier than I’ve seen him in a while.”  
“You can tell all of that from the two hours we’ve been here?”  
“I’m your mother. I can tell a lot of things about my son and the woman he’s fallen for.”  
Kate kept her head down, but her eyes widened in surprise. Chris coughed and she looked over at his bright red face. “Ma, seriously?”  
“What?” Lisa asked innocently. “You can’t tell me it isn’t true.”  
“It’s only been a few days.” Kate said, not looking up from Chris’s leg. “No one falls in love that quickly.”  
“Oh?” Lisa grinned at the two.  
Chris sighed as his mother walked out of the kitchen to join her daughters and other son outside. Kate glanced over and realized they were alone. “I’m sorry.” He said. “My mom she’s….”  
“Wrong?” Kate looked up at Chris and shrugged. “It’s ok. Like I said, no one falls in love that quickly.”  
“She’s not entirely wrong.” Kate dropped the bandage box she’d been holding and Band-Aids exploded all over the floor. He reached out and gently cupped her face with both his hands. “Hey, I’ve been telling you for days that I’ve never felt this comfortable around anyone before. I told you I want to spend as much time as possible with you and that included flying you down to Atlanta. You know all of this.”  
“I know. I do. I just…. Well…. That word…. It’s such a big word.”  
“That’s why neither of us should feel obligated to say it until we’re both ready. I know you’ve got trust issues and I’ve got a ways to go before I earn it completely.”  
“You’re not doing terrible.”  
Chris smiled brightly and leaned forward to kiss her.   
“Ew!” Miles cried. He’d come in without them hearing. Chris burst out laughing and Kate giggled, blushing.  
“Come here, Miles.” Chris took his leg off Kate’s lap, sliding the leg of his pants back down, and waved the four year old over. “You’re a mess.”  
“Why were you biting her face?” Miles asked as Chris dusted his nephew off and tried to fix his hair before giving up and hauling him up on his lap.  
Chris laughed again and Kate blushed again. “I wasn’t biting her face, kid. I was kissing her.”  
“Why?”  
“Because she’s my girlfriend and that’s what good boyfriends do.”  
“It looks gross.”  
“Keep that opinion for a while. It’ll make your mom happy.”  
“Are you going to come back out and play?”  
“In a little while, bud. I hurt my leg and Kat is taking care of it.”   
Miles looked at Kate and shrugged. “Ok.” He hopped down off Chris’ lap and ran back outside. Chris turned his attention back to Kate. “You ok?”  
“Yeah.” She took his hand. “I’m great.”  
“Hey, I never gave you the tour of the house. Ma’s kind of hoarded you all to herself since we got here.”  
“I haven’t minded. She’s pretty great. Are you sure you can walk? We almost had to amputate, you know.”  
He chuckled. “Yeah. You worked a real miracle. I’m really glad I’m not losing the leg” He stood up easily and tugged on her hand. “Come on.” He walked her around the house, showing her different rooms. The basement was really cool. It was a performer’s dream. She made the comment that she could easily put together burlesque routines down there. The tour ended in his bedroom. “It’s about the same as it used to be. Less dorky posters, but it’s the same furniture.” He said, closing the door.  
“A double bed, huh?” Kate asked, sitting on the edge of the bed.  
“Well, I’m not exactly small. I outgrew the twin and mom bought the double my junior year of high school. I might say that I’ve since outgrown the double. Maybe I should buy a queen bed. I don’t think a king bed would fit in here.”  
“It’s comfy.” She bounced on it slightly. “But still not as comfy as mine.”  
“I look forward to testing that theory out.” He moved to stand in front of her and she looked up the length of his body to meet his sparkling blue eyes. “Right now, everyone’s outside. We’ve got some time to ourselves.”  
“Chris….” She was silenced when his mouth met hers. He pressed her back into his bed, scooting her upwards as he crawled on top of her. She giggled as his beard tickled her collarbone, but it turned into a gasp when he bit down on her neck.  
He rolled over and pulled her on top of him as he moved up to lean back against the headboard. “I want to watch you.” She blushed profusely and he chuckled. “Don’t be shy now.”  
“Sorry. It’s just…. Why’d you have to go and say it out loud? I’m a self-conscious now.”  
He chuckled again and rested his hands on her hips. “You have nothing to be self-conscious about. You’re beautiful.”   
“I’ll take your word for it.” She couldn’t resist leaning down to kiss him. His hands snaked up her dress, leaving fire trails where his fingers touched her skin.  
“This would be easier if you weren’t wearing these tights.” Chris growled into her mouth. She just chuckled, running her hands up his shirt and lightly raking her nails down his ribs.  
“Are you sure they won’t come looking for us?” She asked as he slipped her dress over her head.  
“Nope.”  
She sat up suddenly. “Chris!”  
“We better hurry.” He laughed and pulled her back down to him.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Kate and Chris sat next to each other at the dinner table. Scott was on Kate’s other side while Carly and Shanna sat across from them. Lisa was at the head of the table. Dinner had been over and they were all finishing up dessert. The kids were at their own table in the next room and Lisa and Carly took turns checking on them. Carly’s husband couldn’t make it to dinner.  
“Kate, Chris says you’re a photographer.” Carly said.   
“Oh, he exaggerates.” Kate said. “I take pictures, but I’m not a professional.”  
“She’s being modest.” Chris insisted. “She takes amazing pictures. You should see them.”  
“I’d love to.” Carly said.  
“She has a website. I’ll text you the link later. Just remind me.”  
“What kind of pictures do you take?”  
“Oh,” Kate shrugged. “Anything that takes my fancy. My friends ask me to do pictures for them a lot, too. My friend Jessica’s parents’ anniversary is coming up and I’m taking pictures of her and her sister next week. She wants to make a photo album for them.”  
“That’s a really good idea.” Shanna said. “We should do that for mom. Maybe for Christmas.”  
“I would love that.” Lisa said.  
“Kat was telling me about Busch Gardens in Williamsburg doing this big Christmas thing that starts next month. That would be fun to take them there.” Chris said.  
“Maybe we could check it out before we go to Disney.” Carly suggested.  
“Did Chris tell you that mom invited Kat to Disney?” Scott asked.  
“Oh that would be nice.” Shanna said.  
“She’s never been.” Chris said. “It’ll be her first time.”  
“Oh, a Disney virgin?” Carly asked. “That’ll be even more fun. Don’t worry, Kat. We’ll make sure you get to experience everything you want to see and then some.”  
Kate smiled. “Thank you. I hope I can go. I’ve got to check with my boss, first.”   
“If not, I’ll come kidnap you.” Scott said.  
“Thanks.” She looked around the table. “You guys are just a great family.”   
“You fit in beautifully.” Lisa said. “And anyone who makes my Christopher smile that way is welcome in my family. I haven’t seen him smile like that in a very, very long time.”  
Chris looked over at Kate with the smile his mother was talking about and she smiled back. “She’s not so bad.” Chris said.  
“Yeah?” Kate joked. “You’re pretty ok, yourself.”  
“So what all will you guys do in Virginia?” Shanna asked.  
“Well, I do have to work next week, but I get off at four every day, so we’ll have plenty of time for stuff afterwards. I’ve been working on a list of things for Chris to do while I’m at work if he wants to check out Richmond.”  
“Cool.” Chris smiled. “That’s so thoughtful, babe.”  
Kate shrugged. “I didn’t want you to be bored out of your mind and regret coming down.”  
“What all does Richmond have to offer?” Shanna asked.  
“Lots of things.” Kate rattled off a few things that she loved in the city. “We’ll definitely have to go to Carytown.”  
“Oh yeah! Carytown did sound really cool.” Chris said.  
“It’s a very artsy area. You’ll fit in great.”  
“Can we go to that Renaissance house you were telling me about?”  
“Agecroft? Of course! It’s right there by Carytown anyway.”  
“Cool!”  
“What’s Agecroft?” Carly asked. Kate explained that it was a house built in England way back during the reign of Henry VI and in the 1920s, it has been dismantled and brought over by a rich family intending to start a small neighborhood of houses like it. The neighborhood hadn’t gotten very far, only Agecroft and the Virginia House had been built. And when the family had died off, they had the house turned into a museum.  
“It’s like stepping back in time in England instead of Virginia. Even the hill where they built it looks just like where it originally sat over there.” Kate finished.  
“It sounds beautiful.”  
“It’s probably my favorite place in Richmond. I love to sit in the gardens and just read.”  
“She’s been known to put on her Anne Boleyn costume and work as a reenactor for the house every now and then.” Chris said.  
“Oh that sounds like so much fun!” Lisa said.   
“It’s a legit costume, too. She showed me a picture and told me that she can’t get in it by herself.”  
“Where did you get it?”  
“A friend of mine is a really awesome historical seamstress. She’s done work for movie productions before. She made it for me right down to the corset. I paid her a ridiculous sum of money for it, but I love that costume.”  
“It must be a sight to see you in it walking the halls of Agecroft.” Shanna said.  
“It’s pretty surreal. I can’t help but wonder if Anne herself ever walked the same halls once. Or even her daughter because the owner of the house was in good standing with Elizabeth I.”  
“Have you ever been to England?” Scott asked.  
“Sadly, no. I almost went in high school, but my mom couldn’t make it work. It’s on my bucket list.”  
“She’s got a great bucket list.” Chris said. “I should make you write it down, Kat.”  
“I do have it written down somewhere. I used to call it my escape list.”  
“Why your escape list?” Carly asked.  
Kate glanced at Chris. She didn’t know how much he’d told his family. “Is it the reason I think it is?” He asked her.   
Kate nodded. “I didn’t have figure skating anymore, so I made a list of everything I wanted to do to escape my world.”  
Chris took her hand under the table and looked at Carly. “Kat’s father was abusive.”  
“I’m sorry.” Carly said. “No child should ever experience that.”  
“Thank you.” Kate said. “I’ve made some kind of peace with it.”  
“I don’t know how anyone could make peace with it.” Lisa said. “It’s just…. It’s horrible.”   
“Kat’s a strong and beautiful person. She’s conquered more horrible things in her life than anyone should ever have to. I don’t know how you found the courage to smile as brightly as you do after everything, but I’m happy you did.” Chris said. He looked over at her. “I really admire you.”  
“You’re ridiculous.” Kate said quietly.  
“Way to tank the mood.” Scott said playfully.  
“Sorry!”  
“It was very well said, though, Chris.” Lisa said. There was a slight lull in the conversation, but Lisa picked up a new topic. “What time is your flight tomorrow?”  
“Uh, we’re leaving at ten in the morning.” Kate said. “I traded my ticket in for an earlier flight since the one I was originally on was all booked up.”  
“And I upgraded it to first class.” Chris added.  
“Chris!”  
“What? You didn’t say I couldn’t.”  
“You’ve got to stop being so damn nice. You’re setting the bar too high.”  
“You’re ridiculous.” He squeezed her hand and she shook her head at him, smiling.


	7. Chapter 7

Kate fidgeted in her seat, waiting for the few cars driving down the road to pass so she could cross and go down her street. Chris was sitting in the passenger seat looking at his surroundings. She lived kind of in the middle of nowhere. There were woods surrounding the road they were about to drive down. She slowed down near the fourth, well spaced out mailbox and pulled into the driveway there.   
The brick rancher sat in a large clearing. Where the garage door used to be was a set of dark oak French doors with beautiful stained glass windows in the top half of each. The main entrance to the house was a single door similar to the French doors at the top of a wide porch. It was a wide dark oak and the stained glass was the entire middle of the door and on either side were long, thin stained glass windows. There was a large picture window in the middle of the house with jewel blue and chocolate brown curtains covering it.  
Peeking out from those curtains were two dogs that Chris recognized as Denali and Galway. They were barking madly as Kate parked and turned the car off. “Home sweet home.” She said. “We’ll go in my doors here so we can get our bags in safely.” Chris collected his bag and grabbed Kate’s two bags as well. She had her purse and carryon bag and was unlocking the French doors.  
“These are pretty.” Chris said, admiring the doors.  
“Thanks. I actually picked them out. And the front door. It was a mother’s day present from me, my brother, and my step dad.”  
“You’re the only car here. Where is everyone?”  
“Work, probably. We got here earlier than planned.” Kate set her purse and carry on bag down on the leather recliner. “Well, this is my little garage apartment.” In the front was the recliner and a matching sofa set up in front of a 50” Samsung flat screen Smart TV. The TV was surrounded by a custom TV center made up of two floor to ceiling bookshelves, a row of cubbies above the TV, and an entertainment center below the TV. The bookshelves were stocked with all kinds of books, photo albums, and DVDs and BluRays. The entertainment stand was neatly organized with a desktop computer CPU, a Playstation 4, a Direct TV box, and a charging cradle for the Playstation controllers. Through the glass doors, he could see more DVDs and BluRays. The cubbies above the TV held knick knacks, stuffed animals, and picture frames.  
In the middle of the room were the two large, folding screens with famous landmarks from England, France, and Italy painted on them. They extended from each wall, creating a wall of their own with a large gap in the middle that served as a doorway to the bedroom. Between the screen and the TV center was a small refrigerator and a counter with a microwave.  
Behind the screen on the left was Kate’s queen sized bed with her stuffed Thumper sitting in front of the pillows. On the opposite wall from the bed behind the screen on the right was a large, custom closet set up that extended from floor to ceiling. There were small, shallow drawers for jewelry and larger, deeper drawers for clothing on one side. In the middle were two large doors that opened to the wardrobe. On the other side were shelves for shoes. On the top of it were cabinets for storing bags and other things. A folding footstool sat between a small flight of stairs and the shelves so Kate could climb up and collect things from the top cabinets.  
The small flight of stairs led to a short hallway with two doors, one straight ahead with a small doggy door and one to the right. The one on the right was Kate’s bathroom. It wasn’t large, but it had a nice floor to ceiling shower, a good-sized vanity and a toilet. The door at the end of the hallway led into the main house. To the left was a step down into a utility room where the washer and dryer was along with a door to the backyard. To the right was the den with a fireplace and a custom built desk that extended across the far wall. There was a large and a small archway on one wall. The smaller archway led to the kitchen while the other led to the living room.   
They didn’t make it past the den, though, because Denali and Galway were on them. They begged for love from Kate, rubbing against her and barking. When they noticed Chris, they both abandoned Kate to get love from the stranger in their house. Chris got down on his knees and played with them. Kate watched them for a few seconds before she went to the dining room to see if she had any mail on the table. A wall that stretched halfway across the house separated the kitchen from the living room. The dining room sat at the end of the wall, connecting the kitchen and the living room.  
A hallway led from the living room to the three bedrooms and the bathroom. Her parents had the master bedroom, her old room, which was the second largest room, was now a guest room slash office, and her sister Janice’s room was the smallest room. The bathroom was a large bathroom with a stand up shower in one corner and a large, deep Jacuzzi tub in the other corner. There was a long vanity with two sinks and the toilet sat in a space between the vanity and the tub.  
“Come on, guys! Go outside.” Kate said to the dogs as she rifled through her mail. The dogs ran ahead to the utility room and bolted out the door into the large, fenced in backyard as soon as she opened it.  
“This place is nice.” Chris said behind her. “You grew up here?”  
“Yeah. We moved in my sophomore year of high school and haven’t left.” She gestured at the yard where the dogs were running. “This whole area was terrible. Overgrown and there were tree stumps everywhere. My step dad has really fixed the place up over the last fourteen years. The next thing on his honey-do list is the kitchen. Mom wants new cabinets and a new dishwasher along with a new refrigerator. She’ll probably get a new sink and new countertops, too. Complete overhaul. Come on, Gally!” Her Boston terrier ran back in the house while Denali continued running around the backyard. “I don’t like to leave Gally out there. There’s a bald eagle that’s tried to take off with her a few times.”  
“Shit!”  
Kate picked Gally up and the pooch settled in her owner’s arms cradled against her chest, trying furiously to lick Kate’s face. “I know it’s a felony, but I will kill that bird if it harms one piece of fur on my baby.” She kissed Gally’s nose and set her back down on the ground to follow her and Chris back into Kate’s room. She flopped down on the bed and sighed. “I have missed this bed.” Gally climbed up the pet stairs on one side and marched up to the head of the bed, laying down on one of the pillows. Kate watched her and shook her head. “Spoiled brat.”  
Chris sat down on the bed and laid back. “Wow. This bed is comfy.”  
“I told you. It’s definitely more comfortable than yours.”  
“Well, I still can’t judge that. I haven’t slept in it yet. Or done anything strenuous to test it out.” He rolled up on his side and ran his hand over her ribs. “I mean, we’re alone right now….”  
“Travelling doesn’t take it out of you?”  
“Are you tired?”  
“A little bit.”  
“Too tired for….” Chris was cut off by Gally walking up and licking him on his nose. Kate burst out laughing and Gally snuggled herself by Kate’s head. Chris laughed and rubbed the Boston’s belly. “Spoiled brat is right.”  
Kate pushed Gally towards the edge of the bed. “Go lay on the couch.” Gally hopped down and trotted over to the couch with a huff. “Am I too tired for what?”  
Chris leaned down and kissed her deeply, running his hand up her shirt. He was about to climb on top of her when a loud banging came from her front doors. They both shot up, smacking their heads together in the process. Gally started barking madly at the door, jumping up and down in front of it. A moment later, just as they finished putting themselves together, Kate’s step-dad unlocked the front door and walked into her garage apartment.  
“Katie! You’re home early.” He said in his Southern drawl, petting Gally as she jumped up on the recliner to be loved on. “We weren’t expecting you until this evening.”  
“Yeah.” Kate smiled at her step-father. “My flight was booked so we took an earlier flight together.”  
“Who’s we?” He was looking Chris up and down.  
“Papa, this is Chris. Chris, this is my papa Bill.”  
“The Boston boy.” Bill nodded, still looking highly suspicious of Chris. “We’ve heard a lot about you. Mostly from her brother.”  
“I’ve told you about him.” Kate insisted. Bill just grunted. “Ok, papa, you’re very intimidating. Good job. Chris is intimidated, aren’t you Chris?”  
“Yes.” Chris said. He wasn’t entirely lying.  
“You’ve done your fatherly duty, now be a normal human being for once in your life and be nice.”  
“Where’s the fun in being a normal human being?” Bill asked.  
“It’s completely underrated. Try it sometime, you’ll see.”  
Bill held his hand out to Chris and Chris shook it, wincing slightly at the pressure the older man was putting on. “I’ve been to prison before, son, and I’m not afraid to go back. Don’t hurt my daughter.”  
“Papa! Ok, out. Leave. Goodbye. I’ve got to get unpacked.” Kate hustled her step-father back out the door. Gally followed him out, but he shooed her back inside.  
“Call your mother and let her know you’ll be home for dinner…. With a guest.”  
“Ok. Love you.” Kate shut the door and shook her head, muttering to herself. “I am so sorry, Chris.”  
Chris chuckled, petting Gally between the ears. “It’s ok. Has he really been to prison?” Kate shot him a look that told him her step-father was dead serious about that one. “Oh shit.”  
“Don’t worry. Asshole McGhee is still walking this earth. So, you stand a chance against my papa.” Asshole McGhee was the name she’d given her ex that had cheated on her and nearly ruined her life.  
“Good to know. Are you sure I shouldn’t get a hotel?”  
“I’m sure. It was part of the agreement with my parents when I paid to renovate the garage into an apartment that they stay out of my business. This is my apartment, that’s their house. He doesn’t usually just barge in like that.”  
“Extenuating circumstances?”  
“Like me meeting someone in Boston on a trip by myself and wanting to make sure I’m not dead or suddenly have a pimp? Yeah. That’s his definition of extenuating.”  
“So, you paid to renovate this place?”  
“Yeah. I took out a small loan for it. I just finished paying it off earlier this year.”  
“What happens when you decide to move out?”  
Kate shrugged. “They’ll probably add a small stove and rent it out for more than they’re charging me.”  
“They charge you rent?”  
“Well, sort of. It’s kind of a roommate set up. I pay a portion of all the bills.”  
“Oh. Sorry, I don’t mean to pry into your finances.”  
“It’s ok. I’m going to call my mom and start unpacking.” She handed him the remote. “Make yourself comfy.”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Later that evening, Chris was watching a Golden Girls marathon while Kate was stretched out on the couch beside him with her head in his lap. She’d fallen asleep and had stayed that way for almost two hours now. He didn’t mind. He happily stayed still and stroked her hair, running his fingers gently through the golden mass. She hadn’t styled it, so her naturally wavy hair was on display. He decided that he liked it better that way.  
A knock at the door in the short hallway disturbed Gally’s sleeping form on the back of the couch. She shot up, barking, and jumped down on Kate’s hip. Kate yelped and curled into a little ball, glaring fiercely at her dog as she ran for the door. She sat up, rubbing her hip, and looked around.  
“Ugh, what time is it?”  
“About 5:30.” Chris said.  
“Wow, I was out.” Kate stood up and went over to answer the door. It was her mother. “Sorry, I was asleep. Gally, hush! It’s just Granny.”  
“You didn’t tell me you were coming home early. I would’ve come home early, too.” Helena said.  
“I meant to call you, but I fell asleep. But I’m glad we got here early so I could unpack. Now I can show Chris around Richmond tomorrow.” Helena spotted Chris standing up from the couch and let out a startled noise. “Mom, this is….”  
“You think I don’t recognize Captain America?”  
“This is Chris. Chris, this is my mom, Helena.”  
“It’s really nice to meet you.” Chris said, shaking Helena’s hand. “Kat talks about you a lot.”  
“She talks about you, a lot, too.” Helena replied.  
“Mom!” Kate’s face was turning a deep pink.  
“What? You do. How did I not know that your Boston boy was Chris Evans?”  
“Quit being rude. And you didn’t know because I didn’t tell you. Also, you don’t pay attention to the internet.”  
“I did see a story on Facebook yesterday about Chris Evans being at a game with some blonde girl. I didn’t think for a second it was you.”  
“Thanks.”  
Helena shrugged. “The pictures weren’t that great and I can’t see great anyway.” She looked at Chris. “It’s nice to meet you.”  
Chris smiled. “I know this isn’t the most orthodox thing on the planet, but I really do like your daughter. A lot. I hope that we can get to know each other and I can prove to you that I’ll make a good partner for her.”  
Helena nodded. “You’re polite. That’s good. I won’t grill you too hard right now. I think we’ll have time for that later if you’re spending the week. Right now,” She looked at her daughter. “I don’t feel like cooking tonight. Let’s go out somewhere.”  
“Oh, I’m tired of eating out somewhere.” Kate said. “I’ll cook, if you want.”  
“If you want to, but I’m not helping.”  
“You say that every time and every time you wander into the kitchen and nitpick.”  
Helena shrugged. “So what are you making?”  
“I don’t know. Dinner.” Kate turned to Chris. “Do you wanna run to the store with me and we can pick something out?”  
“Sure.” Chris smiled. “That sounds great.”  
“Ok.”  
“Take your sister, please.” Helena said as she headed back for the main part of the house with Gally hot on her heels.  
“What? Why?”  
“Because she needs to do something besides work and watch TV.”  
“Mom, you have tomorrow off and you can make her do all the things then. I am not spending twenty minutes combing the store trying to find her because she’s roamed off somewhere. I just want to get the groceries and get back.”  
“You’re being mean.”  
“No. I’m being practical. If you want to eat dinner on time, then Jan stays here.”  
“Fine. Have it your way.” Helena disappeared into the hallway and the door shutting came a moment later.  
“Sorry.” Kate turned back to Chris. “Jan has this thing where she roams off everywhere we go. It’s a real pain in the ass when she does it at Target or Wal-Mart. I once spent forty five minutes searching for her at Target. And don’t get me started on taking her to the mall.”  
Chris shrugged. “I didn’t think you were being mean.”  
Kate grabbed her purse off the recliner and pulled her keys out. “Mom is always quick to defend Jan. Especially from me. Like I said, she still thinks I’m that misguided teen who was angry and took things out on my little sister.” She sighed as she opened the front door. “This week is going to be so much fun.”  
“I think it will be.”  
“You haven’t met Janice yet.”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Kate had decided on salmon steaks, rice, and a roasted vegetable medley for dinner. She’d had to get a chicken breast for her sister because Jan refused to eat the salmon. Chris sat in the living room talking with Kate’s parents while she cooked. Jan wasn’t very engaged in the conversation. Her eyes were glued to the TV as they usually were. Gally was sitting in Chris’ lap demanding to be petted while he talked. Denali would come over and nudge him for attention, but Gally would manage to get his hands back on her.  
When dinner was about ready, Chris offered to set the table. Kate directed him to where everything was located and he kissed her cheek every time he walked by. Helena came in and checked on the food for about the dozenth time, nodding her approval at her daughter’s cooking skills.  
“We got pie for dessert.” Chris announced as they sat down at the table. “Key lime.”  
“It’s the kind you like, papa.” Kate added.  
“I don’t like key lime.” Jan said.  
“Then don’t eat it.”  
“Kate.” Helena warned.  
“What? No one is forcing her to eat the pie.”  
Helena rolled her eyes and looked at Chris. “Usually I would ask you what you do for a living, but that seems like a stupid question.”  
“Why?” Bill asked.  
“He’s Captain America.”  
“Oh.”  
“You liked ‘Snowpiercer’, papa.” Kate reminded him as she passed him the bowl of rice. “Remember? You watched it a few months ago.”  
“That’s the one on the train, right?”  
“Yeah.” Chris said.  
“So that was you, huh? That was a good movie.”  
“Thank you.”  
“Mom was a theatre major in college.” Kate said to Chris. “I can’t remember if I told you that.”  
“Yeah. You mentioned it.” Chris looked at Helena. “What college did you go to?”  
“Southern Illinois University.” Helena said. “They had a good theatre program.”  
“Were you on stage a lot?”  
“I liked the backstage work more, but I did a few plays.”  
“I guess Kat gets her creative side from you?”  
“She gets it from both her parents. Her father is talented in his own right.” Bill snorted and Helena shot him a look as he scooped up a large helping of veggies.  
“Mom won’t say bad things about my father.” Kate explained, a forkful of salmon on her way to her mouth. “She still thinks it’s wrong to speak badly of him in front of her kids.”  
“I’ve got plenty of things to say if you want to hear them.” Bill said, shooting his daughter a mischievous glint.  
“You’ll do no such thing, William Allen.” Helena said.  
Chris looked over at Kate and she smiled slightly. “I took his last name after I turned eighteen.” She explained. “It used to be Loewenthal.”  
“That’s a mouthful.” Chris said, seemingly demonstrating by shoveling a mouthful of rice into his mouth.  
“Yeah. People have never pronounced it right.”  
“Her father wouldn’t sign the papers to let her change her name when she was younger.” Helena said. “She had to wait until she was old enough.  
“Kat told me about everything you guys went through. I’m really sorry that happened.”  
“Thank you. So you’ve seen some of Kate’s pictures?”  
“Yes, ma’am. She showed them to me in Boston. They’re amazing.”  
“She does have a good eye for it. Katie’s always been creative. From the figure skating and the dancing to the plays she did in high school and now the pictures. She really loved to be on stage, though. The military base near here has a playhouse and they put on ‘Cinderella’ last year. She tried out for the lead role and was sure she wasn’t going to get it because she thought she was terrible at the audition. She ended up playing Cinderella every weekend for about six weeks.”  
“Do you remember when I did ‘Grease’ that one summer back home in Kentucky?”  
“Was that when they condemned the theatre?”  
“Yeah.” Kate looked at Chris. “The place was really old and needed to be torn down, but for some reason, they let the theatre company do ‘Grease’. They had marks on the stage where it wasn’t a good idea to stand because you might fall through. And a good portion of the marks we were supposed to hit were right over or right next to the bad marks. The whole play was us hopping around and trying not to fall through the stage while singing.”  
Chris laughed. “That must’ve been a sight.”  
“I’ve got a video of it.” Helena said. “We converted our old VHS tapes to DVDs about a year ago. I’ll have to dig some out for you.”  
“I would love that. Thank you very much, Mrs. Allen.”  
“Oh, call me Helena. I feel old when people call me missus.”  
“It’s because you are old.” Bill said.  
“You’re two years older than me, Mr. Allen.”  
“I admit that I’m old. Catch up.”  
Kate saw Chris smiling at her parents’ banter. She took his hand under the table and he turned that smile on her. “Usually papa isn’t so reserved. Give him a couple of days and he’ll be at the table in just his underwear and turning everything said into a sexual innuendo.”  
“It’s a gift my husband has.” Helena said. “Some things he says you just sit there and wonder how he got from point A to point Sex.”  
“He also wins the lottery a lot. But only scratch offs. Never the Power Ball or anything.”  
“My luck doesn’t work with that.” Bill said. “I don’t know why.”  
“Slot machines are goldmines for him, too.” Helena added. “We went to Las Vegas and left with more than we came with. I saved money for the trip and he took twenty dollars of it and paid for the whole trip with that twenty.”  
“Nice!” Chris said. “What’s your secret?”  
“It’s no secret.” Kate said. “He has a golden horseshoe jammed up his ass. Which I better inherit when you bite it, old man.”  
“You’ve got to dig it out if you want it.” Bill retorted. “I’m not getting it for you.”  
“I’ll just get the undertaker to haul it out.”  
“He’ll probably steal it for himself.”  
“Nope. I’ll be there taking pictures.”  
“What about your brother? He’s first in line.”  
“He makes six figures a year and I’m pretty sure he’s CIA. He doesn’t need a golden horseshoe.”  
“Your brother is CIA?” Chris asked.  
“I think he is.”  
“He’s not CIA.” Helena said.  
“He’s secretive about where he goes. He can’t talk about most aspects of his job. And he knows too much about things I can’t explain how he knows about them. He’s definitely CIA.”  
“That’s kind of terrifying.” Chris said.  
“Right!? I’ve been trying to get him to fess up, but he swears he’s not. I just say the brother doth protest too much.”  
Chris looked over at Janice who had been quiet this whole time. “Janice, are you close with your brother?” Janice just shrugged.  
“Don’t be rude, Janice. Answer him.” Helena said.  
“Not really.” Janice said.  
Chris tried again. “Kat says that you like movies. What are some of your favorites?”  
“I don’t like superhero movies.”  
“That’s not what he asked.” Bill snapped.  
“Bill….” Helena started.  
“Helena, there’s no reason for her to be so rude.”  
Janice let out a loud huff and stood up from the table, storming off back to her bedroom and slamming the door. Helena closed her eyes in frustration and Kate shook her head. “Sorry, Chris.” Kate said. “She’s uh…. Well, I told you she’s a handful.”  
Helena started to get up, but Bill stopped her. “No. Let her sulk. We’ve got company and she doesn’t need to be out here if she’s going to act that way.” He looked over at Kate. “The food is delicious, baby. I love it.”  
“Thank you.” Kate said, happy that her step-dad had relieved the sudden tension. “I saw the recipe on Pinterest and wanted to try it.”  
“You and your aunt.” Helena said. “You’re always on Pinterest.”  
“Oh, like you’re not?” Kate shot back playfully. “Don’t forget I’m friends with you on there. I’m pretty sure you have ninety eight percent of the recipes on Pinterest pinned to your food board.”  
“Eighty two percent.” Helena said with a laugh. “There’s some on there that are just plain silly.”  
“Kat said you learned to cook in France.” Chris said. “That’s really cool.”  
“It was one of the many places I learned.” Helena said. “My brother was stationed in Germany and I spent the summer with him a couple of times. I met this old French woman while visiting Paris and she invited me to come to her house because I loved food so much. I ended up living with her for a month while she taught me all kinds of things about cooking and baking.”  
“Helena has lived a remarkable life.” Bill said. “But her best moments are when she’s asleep.”  
“Bill….”  
“Has Katie told you that her mother sleep walks?”  
“No.” Chris said.  
“Here we go.” Helena said.  
“Our dog Ireland used to sleep on my side of the bed and she would nudge my hand to get me to pet her in the middle of the night. One night she nudged me and when I went to pet her, she wasn’t there. I didn’t think much of it and went back to sleep, but she did it again. So I opened my eyes to see her staring up past me with a weird look on her face. I look over and Helena is standing spread eagle against the wall like she’s being patted down by the police. I said, ‘Helena, what the hell are you doing?’ She didn’t even look at me. She just said, ‘Never mind. Go back to sleep.’” Chris started laughing and Bill joined in.  
Helena rolled her eyes. “I think they’re making it all up.”  
“No. You’ve scared the shit out of me with your sleepwalking.” Kate insisted. “I woke up one night when I felt someone staring at me. You know that creepy feeling you get? Well, I opened my eyes and she was right over me. When I said her name…. Mom, not her actual name…. She said, ‘Don’t fight the nuns. They’re going to kill you.’ Then she just stood up straight and walked out. I was scared to even move.”   
Chris’ hand was holding his chest as he laughed. “Oh my god!”  
“I was just trying to protect my daughter.” Helena said.  
“I’ve been terrified of nuns ever since.” Kate joked. “Thank god it didn’t happen when I was going to Catholic school. That would’ve really fucked me up.”  
“I don’t think Katie inherited that from me.”  
“I didn’t. I just got the insomnia and the restless legs.”  
“I keep telling you to go to the doctor about that.”  
“I don’t see how those sleep studies work. I sleep bad enough as it is. Hooking me up to a bunch of machines and filming me isn’t going to make me sleep better. There’s no way the data is accurate.”  
“My mom has RLS.” Chris said. “She hated the sleep study they did on her, but the medicine they gave her has helped.”  
“Does it make her tired?” Helena asked.  
“It knocks her right out.”  
“Mine does, too. Katie picks on me at night when we’re watching a TV show and I start falling asleep.”  
“It’s to keep you from saying something in your sleep that will traumatize me.” Kate said. She smiled as Chris and Bill started laughing.

Chris crawled into the bed in just his underwear as Kate finished up in the bathroom. They had stayed up kind of late watching home movies of Kate performing on stage and skating. Watching her skating videos had given him an idea. While Kate was at work Monday, he would have to look into making that idea come true.  
Kate walked down the stairs and smiled at him. “That’s a good sight.”  
“Hmm?” Chris asked, snuggling deeper into the bed.  
“Chris Evans in my bed. I guess Princess Aurora was right.” She climbed in next to him.  
“What was she right about?”  
Kate pointed at the little wooden sign hanging by the stairs. It had the silhouette of Aurora dancing with Prince Phillip and in pretty scroll letters next to it, it said, “If you dream something more than once, it’s sure to come true.”   
Chris chuckled. “Well, we are comparable to Phillip and Aurora. You said so yourself.”  
Kate laughed. “Once upon a dream.”  
Chris pulled her to him. “What did you dream about me doing in this bed?”  
“Oh, a little of this and a little of that.”  
He laughed. “You’re quoting the movie.”  
“Of course I am.”  
“I do love that movie.”  
“Me too.”  
“So, tell me. What does dream Chris do that I need to live up to?”  
“You really want to know?”   
“Oh, I really want to.” He nuzzled her just behind her ear, making her sudder.  
“Well, in one dream he finds a pair of handcuffs that I own and uses those on me.”  
“Kinky. What about specifics? What exactly does he do to you while he’s got you restrained?”  
“Hmm…. There’s a lot of teasing with his mouth. Sometimes he has a beard and sometimes he’s Steve Rogers clean. I prefer the beard because it can tickle and scratch at the same time.”  
Chris moved her hair away from her neck and started kissing her shoulder and neck. “What about with his hands?”  
“Oh, he uses those too. I’m pretty sure there’s not one inch of my skin that isn’t touched by him.”  
He reached down as far as he could and ran his hand up her thigh, over her hip, and across her ribcage before cupping her breast as he bit down lightly on her shoulder. “What else?”  
“Um….” It was getting hard for her to think clearly with his roaming hands and his erection pushing into her backside. She could feel the slight movements against her as his hips pumped almost imperceptibly. “God…. Uh…. He spent a lot of time between my thighs. Biting and sucking and licking…. Jesus, Chris, I can’t even think right now.”  
Chris pulled her onto her back and moved over her, attaching his mouth to her right breast. She let out a moan as one of his hands snaked down her stomach and dipped below her underwear. He made an almost purring noise when he discovered how wet she was for him. His fingers began to lightly swirl her clit, teasing her, as he moved his lips down her body. Before he reached her thighs, he looked up and grinned.  
“Hold onto the headboard.” He said, voice husky. “Don’t let go until I tell you.” She reached up and gripped two of the slats of the headboard.   
He smiled and went back to kissing, licking, and sucking his way around her thighs as he worked her underwear down her legs. Once they were gone, he spread her legs out and rested them on his shoulders. His tongue flicked out over her folds and she writhed under him. He gently raked his nails on her hips as he gripped them to hold her still. She held on tightly to the headboard as he sent bolts of pleasure throughout her body. Just as she felt the first waves of her orgasm start, he pulled his mouth away. She let out a squeak of disappointment.  
“What happens next?” He asked, moving back up her body.  
“Uh….” She shook her head, trying to clear the fog. “In that dream…. I don’t know.” He shot her a confused look. “I wake up before the next thing.”  
“Well, I guess I’ll have to adlib.” He looked at her body appraisingly. “How much flexibility did you maintain from figure skating?”  
“Guess you’ll just have to find out.” She smirked up at him and he chuckled.  
“Oh, I intend to.” Chris sat up on his knees between her legs and reached behind him to grab her ankles.   
Instead of keeping them spread once they were in front of him, he held them together and braced them both on his left shoulder. He leaned forward until her knees were touching her chest. She moaned when he pushed deep inside of her, the angle making her feel full of him. His pace was slow and steady, bordering on torturous. Their grunts and moans were almost in sync with each other. When he wanted to pick up the pace, he sat back up on his knees and spread her legs to either side of him, holding her knees against his ribs. He picked up the pace and was pleased to see that she never let go of the headboard.  
“I thought…. you were…. going to…. test…. my flex…. ability.” She said, between thrusts.  
Chris grunted and pulled out of her, dropping her legs. “You can let go of the headboard now and get on all fours.” She did as he asked, moving slowly so he could enjoy the show. Once she made it on all fours, he lifted her left leg up behind her and rested her shin on his shoulder. He was impressed that she didn’t even flinch. “How far up can I push this leg?”  
“Well, I used to be able to reach behind me and pull it up behind my head. I don’t think it would go that far now, but try for a ninety degree angle.”  
He scooted closer and her leg went up, her toes pointing at the ceiling. He had to lean back slightly to enter her from behind, but when he did, the sensations were incredible. The angle was so different than anything he’d ever experienced before. She’d never tried this position before, either. They both couldn’t hold back the noises that escaped their lips. He felt her flutter around him and then seize down on him suddenly. She cried out into her pillows as he picked the pace up through her orgasm. Her hands dug into the covers and she collapsed down off her hands to her elbows. The new angle pulled him in deeper and soon she was coming again. When the last of her second orgasm began to fade, he felt himself about to go. She squeezed her pelvic muscles and he yelped, spilling himself inside her.  
They laid on the bed staring at the ceiling and panting. Both of them were covered in a fine sheen of sweat. When they looked at each other, they both started laughing. He pulled her to him and she laid her head on his chest.  
“How’s your leg?” Chris asked.  
“Stretched and ready to go.” She answered. “The other one is a little jealous.”  
He patted her right leg. “Next time.”


	8. Chapter 8

Kate’s mother had decided to make a big breakfast for everyone that Sunday morning. She’d already set the table and was flipping blueberry pancakes on the griddle. There were sausage links, bacon, ham slices, scrambled eggs, fried eggs, and a bowl of grits sitting on the table. Jan and Bill were already seated in their usual spots preparing the pancakes that were already on their plates. When Helena served pancakes, she never put them on a plate on the table, she served them individually so they would be fresh for everyone.  
“Wow. This looks great, mom.” Kate said, kissing her mother’s cheek. “What’s the occasion?”  
“It’s Sunday and we have company.” Helena said, handing Chris a plate with three small pancakes.   
“Thank you.” Chris said. “It smells amazing.”  
Helena handed Kate her plate with only two pancakes on it. “Oh, thanks.”  
“You’re only eating two?” Bill asked.  
“I only ever eat two.”  
“What’s on the agenda today for you guys?” Helena asked Kate and Chris.  
“Uh, today is the last day of Howl O Scream. I was thinking we could go to that.”  
“Chris, do you like history?”  
“Yes, ma’am.” Chris said between bites.  
“You would like Williamsburg.”  
“I plan to take him Saturday to Agecroft.” Kate said.  
“Kat’s been telling me all about it.” Chris said. “I’m looking forward to it.”  
“She loves that place.” Helena said. “You’ll enjoy it. Will you be showing him Colonial Williamsburg, Katie?”  
“Uh, probably not. I want to get to the park early enough to ride the rides and then enjoy the haunted houses.”   
“It’s too bad you won’t be here for the Grand Illumination and Christmastown.” Helena said to Chris.  
“Kat told me about Christmastown.” Chris said. “I plan to come back for that. My family is probably going to come down, too, when we go to Disneyworld.”  
“Oh, please don’t bring that place up in front of Katie.” Bill said.  
“It’s ok, papa.” Kate said. “Chris’ mother invited me to go with them. She gave me the dates before we left and made me promise I would go. I’m going to talk to my boss tomorrow and see about getting that week off.”  
Helena was staring at her daughter in shock. “Don’t worry, Mrs. Allen…. Uh, Helena.” Chris said. “I know Kat’s said that you would have to pay for it, but you don’t need to worry about this trip. We’ve got it covered. My family gets a bunch of suites at one of the resorts in a big package deal.”  
“That’s…. very generous of you.” Helena said.  
Chris smiled at Kat. “She won my family over pretty fast. It amazed me, too, that my mom asked her to go.”  
“So, you two are pretty serious, then?”  
“Yes, ma’am. I asked her barely two days after we met to give us a chance.”  
Helena sat down at the table with her pancakes and looked between them for a moment. “My parents fell for each other pretty quickly and they enjoyed a lifetime together.”  
“How did they meet?”  
“Daddy was getting a haircut and mom walked by the building. He saw her and had to ask her on a date. He said, ‘excuse me, gentleman, that’s the woman I’m going to marry.’ He ran out of the barbershop with the cape still tied around his neck and asked her on a date. They were married not even a year later.”  
“They were together from 1939 until 1993 when grandpa died of a broken heart.” Kate said. “My granny had Alzheimer’s and the day she forgot who he was, it killed him. He had a massive heart attack and died.”  
“He couldn’t stand the thought of seeing her in a nursing home and not knowing who he was. He chose not to get better.”  
“That’s so beautiful.” Chris said. “God, that’s the kind of love that I’ve been searching for.”  
“Katie says that all the time, too. She’s been holding out for a man like her grandpa. I think it’s the best decision she’s ever made, but I don’t know if she’ll ever find someone as wonderful as my daddy.”  
“I don’t know.” Kate said. “I think it’s possible.” She secretly squeezed Chris’ hand under the table and he smiled at her.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Chris sat in the passenger’s seat as Kate drove them the hour and fifteen minutes to Busch Gardens. The weather was beautiful and the temperature was warm enough that they didn’t need jackets yet. He looked over and studied her face, memorizing the laugh lines that were permanently etching themselves next to her eyes. Her mouth was full and naturally a deep pink that complemented the porcelain of her skin. Her eyelashes were long and swept up to just under her eyebrows. She’d put on waterproof mascara before they’d left and the blackness of it brought out the sparkling blues and greens of her eyes.  
“You ok?” Kate asked suddenly. She’d noticed him watching her.  
“Yeah. Just…. I’m thanking all the dumbasses that let you go because I am so happy to have you now.”  
She smiled over at him as a deep blush set into her cheeks. “Chris….”  
“Kat, you’re amazing. Your family is amazing…. With the slight exception of your sister. I don’t know what her deal is.”  
“Right now, she’s jealous that she’s not the center of attention and she’s taking it out on everyone to try and win some of it back. It’s her way. She’ll get over it.”  
“I hope so. I want to get to know them. I want to spend time with them because they mean so much to you.”  
Before she could respond, her cell phone started ringing. “Speaking of family…. It’s my cousin, Todd.” He nodded for her to take it. She hit the accept and the Bluetooth in her car picked it up. “Hey Todd.”  
“Hey, Kitty Kat! What are you up to today?”  
“Uh, I’m actually headed to Howl O Scream with my…. Boyfriend…. Right now.”  
“When did you get a boyfriend?”  
“Long story. What’s up?”  
“Amy and I got a babysitter and wanted to see if you want to go to Howl O Scream. She’s been dying to go and today’s the last day.”  
“Well, we’re about thirty minutes away right now. We can meet you there.”  
“Cool! We don’t have passes, so would you mind meeting us outside the park?”  
“Are you just asking me if I want to go so you can use my free parking?”  
“No. I wanted to see how your trip to Boston went and use your free parking.”  
Kate laughed. “Ok, fine. I’ll meet you at Yankee Candle in Williamsburg.”  
“Great. Looking forward to meeting the new man.”  
“Oh, I’m looking forward to it too. See you in about an hour.” Kate hung up and grinned at Chris. “I am so sorry for what is about to happen.”  
“What’s about to happen?” Chris asked.  
“My love of Marvel…. It comes from Todd. He is a huge Marvel fan. He has a storage unit full of Marvel comics and his favorite character is…. Well…. Captain America.”  
“Oh. Ok.”  
“I’m not saying he’s going to go bonkers…. But I am telling you to prepare yourself just in case.”  
Chris chuckled. “Ok. I’ll prepare myself. So, we’re making a pit stop at Yankee Candle?”  
“Yeah. It’s one of their flagship stores and it’s huge. It’s not just candles, either. Though they do have every single candle you can think of there.”  
“I might have to buy a few. Ma loves Yankee Candle.”  
“I do too.”  
“I noticed. You have quite a few of them scattered around your apartment.”  
“They discontinued the one that I really loved, so I stocked up on it while they still had some in stock.”  
“Which one was that?”  
“The Napa Valley Sunset one. It was part of their vineyard collection. It smells amazing. When I need to de-stress, I light one, grab a bottle of wine and whatever book I’m reading, and I curl up on the couch. Or my bed.”  
“That sounds heavenly.”  
“It is. It really is. Or rather…. It used to be.”  
“Why ‘used to be’?”   
“Because I discovered curling up on the couch with you and that is so much better.”  
Chris’ lips spread into an ear splitting grin. “I think that’s the first cheesy romantic thing you’ve said to me.”  
“Is it?”  
“Yeah!”  
“I guess you got to me with all of your cheesy romance.”  
“Mission accomplished.” He leaned over and kissed her cheek.  
Kate laughed and took his hand as she continued their drive to Williamsburg. She pulled into the Yankee Candle parking lot twenty minutes later and found a spot in the back where Todd was sure to see her car and park next to it. Hand in hand, they strolled into the store and Chris’ eyes widened.   
“Wow. Ok, this place is cool.” He said.  
She pointed up to the ceiling that was painted to look like the sky. “The ceiling changes from day to night every few minutes. But that’s not the best part of this place.” Kate pulled him towards the back left corner and through an archway that led into a winter wonderland. “It’s Christmas all year in here.” They walked up onto the bridge in the middle of the room and looked around. Above them, the ceiling was black with little lights twinkling on it like stars. There was a loud noise like a large fan being started up and suddenly it was snowing.  
“Ok, that’s really cool.” He spotted Santa’s workshop where a large, white-bearded man was sitting at a desk in a Hawaiian shirt and red shorts. There were a couple of kids in front of him and he was writing things down in a book. “There’s a Santa?”  
“He’s on vacation from the North Pole. Later this month they’ll have a big Christmas parade with the Grand Illumination and Santa will show up in full gear here. Though he’s not nearly as awesome as the Santa at Christmastown.”  
They walked down the other side of the bridge and began to browse through the hundreds of different ornaments offered there. Chris found a Boston terrier ornament and held it up. “It’s a Gally!”  
Kate laughed. “I actually have that ornament. I couldn’t resist it.”  
He grinned. “They have every kind of ornament you could ever imagine here.”  
“Pretty close. Personally, I like Hobby Lobby’s selection. I love finding ornaments there.”  
“Yeah, ma spends a lot of time at craft stores. She loves Hobby Lobby, too.”  
“It’s pretty much the Mecca of awesome. I like to scrapbook, and their scrapbooking section is the best.”  
“I noticed all your scrapbooks in one of your bookshelves.”  
“There’s more up in the attic.” She laughed at the small collection of ornaments in his hand. “Here,” She walked over to the entrance of the Christmas store and grabbed a basket. “Put them in here.”  
“Thanks. Did you see the Christmas villages over there? There’s a Nightmare Before Christmas one!”  
“Yeah. That’s my favorite. If I ever start doing Christmas villages, that’s the one I’m getting.”  
“I might have to start doing Christmas villages if I can have that one.”  
“Well, my trunk has plenty of room if you want to buy it.”  
Chris eyed the village for a long moment, contemplating. “Not right now. I’d have to find a way to get it back to my house in LA.”  
“Why not Boston?”  
“The apartment doesn’t have anywhere big enough to put it all.” He wrapped his arm around her waist and they continued to the next section of the store.   
They were sniffing candles when Todd and Amy found them. “Kitty Kat!” Todd said, picking her up by the waist.  
“Toad!” She laughed. He set her down and turned to Chris. Kate was sure she was going to have to pick his jaw up off the floor. Amy was behind him staring wide eyed. “Guys, this is Chris. Chris, this is my cousin Todd and his wife Amy.”  
“Oh shit.” Todd said. He took Chris’ outstretched hand. “It’s nice to meet you, man. I’m such a huge fan. Huge. You’re amazing as Captain America. The best there’s ever been. How the hell do you know my cousin?”  
“We met in Boston last week.” Chris said. “I knocked her down into dog shit.”  
“It was very romantic.” Kate quipped.  
“Kat, you do realize who this is, right?” Todd asked her.  
“Yeah. He’s my Boston boy that wooed me with food and chivalry.” She looked over at Amy. “Hey, you’re catching flies.”  
Amy quickly shut her mouth and shook Chris’ hand. “It’s nice to meet you guys.” Chris said since Amy still couldn’t speak.  
“So, are we taking my car or yours?” Kate asked, smiling brightly.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Once Todd got over being star-struck, he and Chris kept up an easy flow of conversation. Amy and Kate ended up walking behind their men and chatting. They rode the rides and every roller coaster there and enjoyed a couple of the shows during the day.   
Chris got a few glances and stares as people seemed to recognize him, but no one swarmed him. He kept a low profile while enjoying the park with his girlfriend and members of her family. He did end up signing a few autographs for fans brave enough to approach him. When they asked what he was doing there, he simply answered that he was having fun.  
They enjoyed some of the food and drinks that the park had to offer. A few of the stands were offering Jell-O shots in large syringes. Chris had managed to collect about seven of these by himself in different colors. Kate had only indulged in four of them. When night began to fall and they opened the haunted houses, they’d gotten Quick Queue passes for them to avoid the long lines. Chris kept Kate close to him, both of them laughing when one or both of them got startled. Whenever a scarer tried to scare Kate and it didn’t work, she would wave and them and say hi. This caused Chris to let out his loud, boisterous laugh every time it happened. They didn’t leave the park until it was after closing time.  
On their way out, Chris had a surprise waiting for Kate at the package pickup. It was a large statue of a black clad fairy with a pearl white dragon wrapped around her as she lovingly pet its head resting on her shoulder. Kate had been admiring it at one of the shops. Todd had been the one to mention to Chris that the statue was something his cousin had wanted for a few years but had never justified buying for herself. When she’d gone to the bathroom, he had quickly purchased it and had it sent to the front of the park for pick up when they left.  
“Are you serious, right now?” Kate asked.  
“Yeah. This is the one you’ve been wanting, right?” Chris asked, carrying the statue back to the car.  
“How did you even know?”  
“Well, you were staring at it for a long time and I could tell you liked it. Then Todd told me you had been wanting it for a while.” She shot a glare at her cousin walking ahead of them with Amy. “I’m sorry. I thought you would like the surprise.”  
“I do. I do like it. I love it, actually, because I have been eyeballing it for a few years now. But you can’t just buy me things just because I like them. You’re spending way too much money on me already.”  
“Who says?”  
“I says! Chris, just because I say I like something or I want something, doesn’t mean you have to rush in and buy it. I’m not asking you to.”  
Chris stopped and she turned to him. “I know you’re not asking me to. You’re not that kind of person. I understand that.” He set the statue down and gripped her upper arms. “Look, I like making you happy. The smile on your face makes my world light up and I would do anything to be the one to put that smile there. I’m sorry if me buying you presents is making you uncomfortable. That’s not my intention.”  
He looked like a slightly wounded puppy dog. “Oh, Chris.” She sighed. “I know you’re not trying to make me feel all out of sorts. I should probably just stop complaining. I just…. I’m not used to someone that seems to want to give me the world.”  
“Maybe not the world. But definitely the things in it that make you happy.”  
“I can’t give you those things back, though. I can’t just buy you things at the drop of a hat.”  
“Baby, it’s ok. I can buy me things if I want them. You don’t need to. The only thing I need you to give me is you. And maybe some scrapbooks. I wouldn’t hate some scrapbooks from you.”  
She leaned into him and reached up to kiss him. “You’re ridiculous.” He grinned and picked up the statue and they continued on their walk to the car. “And I do love my statue. Her name is Silvren Uir, by the way.”  
“That’s pretty. Where did you come up with that?”  
She blushed and shook her head. “It means ‘glittering eternity’ in Sindarian Elvish.” He gave her a confused look. “Lord of the Rings.”  
He laughed. “You’re such a nerd.”  
She stuck her tongue out at him and he grinned like a big kid.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Kate and Chris laid in her bed later that night, both of them naked and sweaty. The room was quiet except for their breathing and the snoring coming from Gally sleeping on the back of the couch. The bed was positioned right under the window and soft moonlight streamed through the curtains. Chris admired every curve of her body and the soft tendrils of blonde hair spread around her head.  
“You really are stunning.” He said quietly. She chuckled. “I mean it.”  
“I won’t be so stunning in the morning.” Kate said, glancing at the clock. She was going to have to get up in six hours to go to work. Starbucks was definitely in her near future. “What will you do tomorrow?”  
“Probably sleep in. Maybe snoop around your room. Find those handcuffs you mentioned.”  
“You’ll probably find more than that.”  
“Fun.” He pulled her closer against him. “I might rent a car and explore some.”  
“Do you want to just take mine?”  
“Won’t you have it at work?”  
“Not if you take me to work and pick me up when I’m done.”  
“Are you sure you’d want to do that?”  
“Yeah. If I suddenly need a vehicle, I’ll just use the company car.”  
“Only if you’re sure.”  
“I’m sure. Besides, you can come have lunch with me if you want.”  
“Your boss wouldn’t mind?”  
“Tasha won’t mind. It’s usually just me and her in the office.”  
“Ok.” Chris let out a yawn that threatened to split his face in half. His eyes were half closed and he could barely keep them open that much anymore. “I’m beat.”  
“I’ll see you in the morning.” Kate kissed him before cuddling against him and falling asleep.


	9. Chapter 9

Chris made sure the drink carrier was steady before grabbing the bags of food with his other hand. He headed towards the main doorway and carefully opened the door. Kate was just passing by the doors on her way back to her office and spotted him. The smile that lit up her face made his world feel complete suddenly. She rushed over to open the door, setting the file she was holding down on the reception desk.  
“Hi!” She took the drink carrier from him and he kissed her. “You really didn’t have to get us food.”  
“I know, but I wanted to see the office. I was too tired to notice my surroundings this morning.”  
“The coffee didn’t help?” She led the way into the conference room.  
“A little. But I went back to your place and crashed. I woke up just before you called. How do you look so rested?”  
“Coffee. I’m normally a tea drinker, but Starbucks has kept me alive today. And it’s been kind of hectic, so I don’t have time to think about a nap. Being gone for a week, that paperwork really starts to pile up.”  
“I’d get you an assistant, but the company says no.” Tasha said, walking into the room. “Is this him?”  
“This is Chris.”  
“It’s nice to meet you.” Tasha shook his hand. “Kate is very picky about guys, so it’s awesome that she found someone.”  
“Picky, huh?” Chris chuckled.  
“Extremely. We’ve gone out a few times for drinks after work and she swats away guys that I thought would be great.”  
Kate shrugged. “I’ve never thought my prince charming would stumble up to me reeking of alcohol.”  
“See? Picky.” Tasha laughed and poked Kate in the arm.  
“Hey, my pickiness paid off.” Kate wrapped an arm around Chris’ waist and he kissed the top of her head.  
“I’ll say.”   
“Did you see your prince charming knocking you down into dog shit?” Chris asked.  
Kate laughed. “Not at all.”  
Tasha pulled out one of the bowls of fries. “Oh! They’re still nice and hot.”  
“Kate had a hot/cold bag in her trunk. It really works great.” Chris said, sitting down next to Kate. “I didn’t know which dipping sauce to get, so I got two of everything.”  
“The garlic aioli is my favorite.” Kate said.  
“Somehow I figured it would be.” He smiled brightly at her and handed over one of the small cups. “This place was such a hole in the wall that I missed it at first.”  
“They’re small, but they have some of the best burgers.”  
“Kate introduced me to it last month.” Tasha said. “She’s not lying about how good the burgers are.”  
“I’m looking forward to it. The place smelled amazing.” Chris’ phone started ringing and he grabbed it. “Oh, I need to take this.”  
“You can use my office.” Kate pointed across the hall to her office door. She watched him leave the room and shut the door behind him.  
“He’s sexy.” Tasha said suddenly. “Very well built.”  
“Do you even realize who he is?”  
“Am I supposed to?”  
Kate rolled her eyes as she pulled out her turkey burger. “How do you have a teenage daughter and are so clueless about pop culture?”  
“Is he famous or something?”   
“Ask your daughter who Chris Evans is and tell her you met him. Let me know if she makes it.”  
Tasha laughed. “Ok.”  
Chris came back into the room. “Sorry about that.” He sat down in his chair again.  
“Everything ok?” Kate asked.  
“Yeah. I’m glad they got back to me so fast.”  
“Me too!”   
He laughed and shook his head. “Can we eat now? I’m starving!”  
“Yes!” Obviously he wasn’t going to say who it had been on the phone, so Kate decided to move on to another subject.  
By the time they’d finished lunch, Tasha was completely smitten with Chris. She still had no idea that he was famous, but she now knew that he was an actor. As Kate walked Chris back out to her car, he said, “She’s pretty great.”  
“Yeah. I’m lucky to have such a great boss.”  
“I have a surprise for you.”  
“Oh?”  
“You’re going to love it. But I can’t give it to you right now.”  
“Ok.”  
“You’re getting off at…. Four, right?”  
“Right.”  
“Ok. So, I will be here promptly at four and you will get your surprise then.”  
Kate chuckled at his boyish enthusiasm. “Ok.”  
“Don’t be nervous. You’re going to love it.”  
“If you say so.” She reached up and kissed him. “You’re ridiculous.”  
“I know.” He pulled her to him and kissed her a little deeper. “I’ll see you at four.”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
He kept his word. Kate walked out to find him leaning against the hood of her car looking like sex on a stick. She grinned like an idiot and shook her head. “I think I had a dream once that started exactly like this.”  
“Yeah?” Chris asked, grinning back at her. “I think I had the same dream. Only you were on the car like it was a White Snake video.”  
“I’m already starring in your dreams, huh?”  
“This was before I met you, but I swear, the girl was you.”  
“You’re getting sappy on me, Evans.”   
“I’m being serious.”  
She reached up and kissed him thoroughly. “Enjoy your surprise!” Tasha called from her car.  
Chris and Kate waved at her before getting into Kate’s car with Chris behind the wheel. “So, I don’t have your surprise with me. I have to take you to it.”  
“Ok.” Kate looked down at the outfit she was wearing. “Am I dressed appropriately?”  
Chris appraised the black leather ankle boots, black leggings, and dark blue plaid, button up tunic top. She had the top four buttons undone and a lacy black camisole was peeking out and accenting her breasts. His eyes lingered there for a long moment. “I think so.”  
“Eyes up here, soldier.” Chris laughed, but looked up into her eyes. “Are you going to tell me what the surprise is?”  
“Not until we get there.” He put the car in drive and drove out of the lot. Her GPS was already set to their destination, so without bringing up the address, she had no idea where they were going. It took them about thirty five minutes to get there with traffic, but she realized where they were before they even pulled into the parking lot.  
“This is where I trained before I broke my knee.” She said.  
“Is it?” Chris parked the car. “I just looked up ice skating rinks and this one came up.”  
“There’s two in Richmond. The other one is smaller and their figure skating programs aren’t as good as this one.” She smiled brightly.  
“The whole place is ours. Obviously there’s people inside running concessions and stuff, but I rented the place out for the evening.”  
“The ice is ours?”  
“Yup.”  
“How did you do this with so little time?”  
“Well, I actually started looking Saturday after we got here. It was while you were asleep. I emailed them yesterday and we went back and forth about what I would need and if I was actually who I said I was. They finally got back to me today with the final answer. That was the phone call I took at lunch. I came up here after and signed the contract and paid the money to rent it.”  
“Chris….”  
“This is for my entertainment, too. I want to see you skate in person. And I figured this would be a really good early birthday present.”  
“It is a very good early birthday present. I have to warn you, though, it won’t be as awesome as the videos. I can’t skate like that anymore.”  
“That’s ok. I just want to see you in your happy place.” He reached behind her and brought her skate bag to the front. She hadn’t even noticed it in the backseat. “I had them sharpen the blades for you earlier. I didn’t know if they needed it. My pair is waiting inside.” He got out and came around to her side, holding the door open for her.   
She followed him inside, holding his hand. There was a bag with Chris’ skates sitting on a bench with two bottles of water. They changed into their skates and Kate took a moment to stretch and make sure the skates felt ok on her feet. He watched her intently, appreciating her body for a long moment. Even if he hadn’t known her background, he would’ve pegged her for an ex-athlete or dancer. Though her body was softer now than in the pictures and the home movies, the gracefulness and the flexibility were still evident. She broke his concentration when she reached into her purse and pulled out an elastic band for her hair and swept it quickly up into a ponytail.   
When the doors opened to the rink, the music playing was a mix of 90s hits. She laughed and asked him to wait a minute so she could do a couple of practice laps to make sure she was steady. He ushered her onto the ice and then leaned against the boards to watch her. She was definitely steady on her feet. All hints of her klutziness were gone as she glided easily around the ice, executing a turn and skating backwards in front of him. She was picking up speed as she turned back around and then suddenly stopped, sending up a spray of ice.  
“Ok. I think I’m good.” Kate said, coming back over to him.  
“I’d say so.” He wasn’t unfamiliar with ice skates, but he definitely wasn’t as good as she was. He wobbled some on their first go around and wiped out on their second, but eventually she had him upright and at a good speed.  
“Did you choose the music?”  
“Yeah. They’ve got Sirius radio, so I asked them to put it on the 90s channel.” He laughed as he realized she was skating backwards in front of him and wasn’t even looking where she was going. “You’re showing me up.”  
“Well, I do have a few more years of training than you.”  
“True. How do you know when to turn before you hit the wall?”  
Kate shrugged. “I watch the bend of the boards and the curve of the ice. It tells me when I’m getting too close.” She turned suddenly and skated a few feet over to the boards and stopped. “I failed at that once.” He joined her and she knelt down, pointing out a deep gouge in the hard plastic that made up the half wall around the ice. “This is where my skate caught and I destroyed my knee.”  
“It was at this rink?”  
“Yup. It happened so fast, the pain didn’t hit me right away. I thought I was fine and then I tried to stand up. It all hit me at once and I passed out from the pain. Woke up in an ambulance on the way to the hospital. Right up until that moment, I knew what I was going to do with my life. Now I kind of feel like a drifter. I have all these talents, but I don’t know what to do with them. I like my job, but it’s boring.”  
“You don’t know what you want to do?”  
Kate shook her head and began to skate again. “I love to take pictures, but would I love it if it was my job? The thing I relied on to bring money to my bank account?”  
“I think you would. Yeah, there would be days where you question your decision, but in the end it’s what makes you happy.”  
“Is that how you feel about your job? Do you ever question your decision to become an actor?”  
“Sure I do. There are days when the hours are long and maybe a stunt is extra demanding and I just sit there asking myself ‘what am I doing’…. And I hate red carpets. Hate. The crowds, the never ending repetitive questions, the noise…. It’s all too much. My anxiety kicks in.”  
“How do you deal with it?”  
“I grit my teeth and get through it as fast as possible. Sometimes I drink a few beers a little bit beforehand to loosen me up. It helps to have people I care about with me. That’s why you see me at those things with my family and some of my friends.” He followed her around the rink, watching her face as she thought about what he’d said. “What about figure skating?”  
“What about it?” Kate turned suddenly and was skating at his side, looking up at him.  
“Well, couldn’t you coach? Isn’t that what skaters do when they retire?”  
“I don’t have enough experience to be a coach. I had only been a senior level skater for about two months when I broke my knee.”  
“What about teaching kids? You’re great with them.”  
She laughed. “I could maybe do that part time, but it wouldn’t pay the bills.”  
“Maybe you’re too concerned with paying the bills.”  
“Who’s going to pay them for me? My parents? I’m almost thirty years old.” She shook her head and stopped suddenly. It took him a moment to turn around and get back to her. “So, I have this thing about control. Controlling my emotions, controlling my surroundings to the best of my abilities, controlling the situations I find myself in…. I learned to walk on eggshells from an early age. I’ve been an unwilling party to out of control for a large chunk of my life…. I refuse to be a willing party to it. Paying my bills on time and saving money and knowing that I’ll be ok if anything bad happens…. That’s important to me.”  
He nodded and took her hands. “I didn’t mean to offend you.”  
“You didn’t. I just needed you to know that.”  
He gently took her face in his hands and leaned down to kiss her deeply. “Kate, as long as you’re with me, I promise that nothing bad will happen. Don’t hesitate to ask me for help, ok? Any help.”  
She let out a breath she didn’t realize she’d been holding. “Thank you.”   
“Ok,” He released her and moved back slightly. “I want to see you do some cool shit out here.”  
“I don’t know how much cool shit I can still do. I might bust my ass.”  
“Then we’ll be even.” He gave her a bone melting grin and she couldn’t help but smile back.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
“I’m going to gain so much weight being with you.” Chris joked.  
“Well, we had a good workout.” Kate said.  
“You had a good workout.”  
“And my knee is still complaining. Glad I had my brace in the car.”  
“This is incredible.” He took another bite of the pasta he’d ordered and closed his eyes in bliss. They were at this little hole in the wall place called Edo’s Squid. The entrance was a door on the side of a building that led up some stairs to what used to be a second floor apartment that had been converted. “How does someone even find this place?”  
“Yelp. I searched for the top restaurants and decided to try them all.”  
“Any of them let downs?”  
“Not yet.” Kate’s cell phone started ringing and she sighed. “Sorry.”  
“It’s ok. Take it if you need to.”  
“It’s my friend Dalia.” She hit the green answer button. “Hey lady. What’s up? Oh, uh…. I don’t know. I mean…. I could, but I need to check with someone. Can you hold on a sec?” Kate moved the phone away from her ear and hit the mute button.  
“What’s up?” Chris asked, curious.  
“Dalia had a drop out in her show Friday night. She wants Kitty Monroe to fill in for the two numbers.”  
His face lit up. “I get to see you do burlesque?”  
She closed her eyes and sighed. “If I say yes.”  
“Please say yes! Please!”  
Kate let out another sigh and shook her head, taking the phone off mute and putting it back to her ear. “Ok. I’ll send you the music later tonight. Do you have any requests? Ok. You’re welcome. I’ve got a plus one coming, is that ok? Great. I will see you Friday night.” She hung up and shook her head at Chris. “Oh my god.” Her hands moved up to cover her face and she groaned into them while Chris laughed. “You are way too giddy about this.”  
“Because I get to see my girl on stage!” She looked up at his grinning face. He really was excited about it. “Don’t be nervous.”  
She moved her hands from her face. “Hard not to be.”  
“Why?”  
“Because it’s you! I have to perform in front of you!”  
“Why is it me that makes you nervous and not perfect strangers who haven’t seen you naked?”  
“Chris, I look up to you. You’re a great actor. I didn’t ever just like you for your looks or the fact that you’re Captain America. I respect your talent. I admire your ability to immerse yourself in a character. I’m in awe of your ability to make your characters come to life and be believable. I can see you winning Oscars someday. You would be winning them now if the Academy wasn’t so anti-superhero movie because Cap can be such a boring character, but you give him layers and he’s not just this goody-two-shoes. You make it believable that he does actually have a dark side. And don’t get me started on how great I thought you were in ‘Puncture’ and ‘Sunshine’. They’re highly underrated movies.”  
“Wow.” Chris placed a hand over his heart, genuinely overwhelmed with gratitude. “Thank you.”   
“You can’t tell me that you wouldn’t be nervous having to act in front of actors like Daniel Day-Lewis or Meryl Streep who I know you think of in the same way I think of you.”  
“Well, yeah, I would be. They’re some of the greats.”  
“That’s where I’m coming from. You don’t expect someone you’re a fan of to suddenly be in the audience watching your every move and judging your performance.”  
“I’m not going to judge you, baby. I’m going to be watching and enjoying the show and secretly thinking of all the things I want to do to whatever body part you’re in the middle of revealing when I get you home.”  
Kate’s face flushed bright pink. “Chris….”  
He reached across the table and took her hand. “Kat, I won’t be judging you, I promise. I’ll be ten thousand percent supportive. I’ll be the loudest in the room. I might bring you flowers. I’ll definitely give you a standing ovation. Can I invite Scott to come down for the show?”  
She sighed, laughing slightly to herself, and eyed him warily for a long moment. “I guess. You’ll need someone to keep you company while I’m getting ready for the show, anyway. Fuck I wanna throw up now.” She glared at her pasta. “I can’t finish this.”  
“So we’ll get it to go.” He motioned to the waitress and asked her to bring them a couple of boxes. “Do you want to go home or is there something you’d like to do while we’re up this way?”  
“Uh, I can’t think of anything to do this late in the evening.” She shrugged. “I’m not a big night life person.”  
“Me either.”  
“Says the guy who’s invited to all the parties.”  
He chuckled. “You don’t see me out much when I’m not promoting something. I like to be at home with my friends and family.”  
“Me too.”   
The waitress came and boxed up their dinners. Kate paid the check and they headed out to her car. Richmond is a college city and they were in the middle of everything. Young adults bustled by, not paying much attention to anything but their cell phones. All the bars and little restaurants were packed with people enjoying themselves.  
“Did you go to college here?” Chris asked, slipping his hand into hers.  
“No. I went to William and Mary.”  
“Isn’t that a tough school?”  
“Yup. There’s this pathway on campus that has the graduation percentage of each class. It’s kind of depressing because most of them suck.”  
“Wow. That’s one hell of a mind fuck! Right off the bat they’re like, ‘you’re pretty much fucked, but good luck anyway!’”  
Kate laughed. “Yeah. They purposely get down on the freshman and make it harder on them. I read somewhere that freshman suicide is the highest on that campus. As someone who went there straight out of high school, those first two years were insanely hard. I almost quit a few times. I definitely spent a lot of time in my dorm sobbing my eyes out because it was too much.”  
“Were your grades good?”  
“Yeah. Well, in everything but math related stuff they were. Numbers and I don’t get along very well.” She looked around. “A lot of my friends went to this school. Some of them started out at Richard Bland for the first two years and then transferred here or to William and Mary. It was interesting making all those new friends at college and then my old friends suddenly showed up. It was weird.”  
“Bad weird?”  
“Um…. Sometimes.”  
“Did you have that college experience with the drinking and the parties?”  
She laughed. “A little. It just wasn’t for me, though. I hung around the theatre geeks and stayed in most of the time.” Her face turned a lovely shade of pink. “I watched a lot of your movies in college.”  
“Did you really?”  
“Yes. I was in the middle of one of those sob fests when I saw you in ‘Cellular.’ It made me stop crying and from that moment I was hooked on Chris Evans. I bought your movies as soon as I found them on DVD.”  
He laughed and shook his head. “That’s embarrassing. Those early movies were so….”  
“Early 2000s.” She finished for him. “I still liked them. There was just something about you….”  
Chris turned her to face him and leaned down to kiss her suddenly. She melted into him and wrapped her arms around his waist. They reluctantly broke apart when people around them started whistling, clapping, and catcalling.  
“Come on,” He said, pulling her towards the car. “I need to get you home.”  
She laughed. “It’s not that late, Chris.”  
“I’m not talking for sleep.”  
“Oh.”  
The ride back to her house was probably the quickest it had ever been. The air in the car was thick with their sexual tension and they had only allowed themselves to touch hands. As soon as the car was in park, both of them had their doors open and were meeting in front of the car. Chris lifted her up and she wrapped her legs around his waist as they kissed. He fumbled with the keys for a long moment, pressing her against the door, before finally getting it unlocked.  
They tumbled inside and he kicked the door shut behind him. Clothes started flying as they made their way towards the bed. Unfortunately, Kate’s klutziness showed up and she tripped over her leggings, falling backwards onto her backside. It barely fazed Chris, he just followed her to the floor, yanking the offending leggings off and pressing his now bare chest to hers. He grabbed her wrists and held them above her as he kissed her fiercely.  
With his free hand, he pushed her underwear aside and got his boxer briefs out of the way before pushing into her. She let out a squeak into his mouth, but then began to moan as he rocked in and out of her. Her legs wrapped around his thighs and urged him on. At some point in all the grunting and sweating, he realized they were on the floor. He released her wrists and got to his feet. She let out a groan of protest, but he pulled her to her feet and led her over to the bed.  
Kate had different ideas, though, and pushed him away. He watched as she turned around and bent over the edge of the bed, taking her underwear off before sliding her arms up the comforter. He groaned at the sight as she looked back at him enticingly. Without a moment’s hesitation, he moved forward, took his underwear off, and slid into her from behind. She had to move up on tiptoe for him to get the best angle, but once they found their rhythm, she found herself quickly falling over the edge. A few moments later, Chris followed her. They both stayed still for a long time, panting and trying to bring their heart rates down.  
“Nope.” Chris said suddenly.  
“Nope?” Kate asked.  
“I’m not even close to done with you.” He lifted her up and laid her on the bed, moving between her legs. His head dipped between her thighs and he began licking, biting, and sucking her still swollen nub. She arched up, hands clutching at the comforter around her. Incoherent mumbles spilled from her lips and then a growl escaped as he slid two fingers inside her, hooking them upwards.  
He teased her and sent her over the edge two more times before he was ready for more himself. As she recovered from her fourth orgasm, he slid into her again. At this point, she was nothing but raw nerve endings. Every sensation was almost too much. He brought her legs up against his chest and leaned forward, penetrating deeper. It wasn’t long before they were both climaxing again.  
When she discovered English again, Kate looked over at Chris. “You’re probably going to be the death of me.”  
“Yeah?” Chris asked, breathing heavily. “Ditto.”  
She chuckled. “At least we’ll die happy.”  
Eventually they cleaned themselves up and moved under the covers. Chris pulled her back against his chest and pressed a kiss to her shoulder. The moonlight filtered in through the window and he watched it gleam off her hair. Her chest rose and fell, becoming more even as she drifted off to sleep. His hand found hers and he wove his fingers with hers as he placed it against her heart. “Kat, you are seriously the best thing that’s happened to me in a long time.”


	10. Chapter 10

Kate followed Chris around as he explored Maymont Park in Richmond. She had left work early at the insistence of her boss. They had been through the welcome center and gone through the wildlife center where the otters were. They’d seen the bears and the foxes and the farm animals out in the nature reserve. Now they were roaming the grounds, making their way up the path into the Italian gardens from the Japanese gardens.  
“My cousin got married here.” Kate said, mounting the stairs around the fountain right behind him.  
“Todd?” Chris asked, stopping to wait for her.  
“Yeah.” She pointed to the long Italian pavilion at the top of the hill. “Up there.”  
“This is a really pretty place for a wedding.”  
“It was really pretty. I love the pictures I took for them. Amy said she wished she’d hired me because mine were better.” She shrugged. “They had the reception in the carriage house.”  
“Did everyone sit in carriages while they ate cake?”  
She giggled. “No. They converted most of it into rooms for receptions and parties. The carriages are in the stables now. I’ll show you when we get up there. Fuck I hate cardio.” Kate huffed as they made it to the top of the steep stairs.  
“You and me both.” Chris laughed. He was slightly winded, too. They found a bench and sat down on it. “You didn’t warn me about all the hills.”  
“Hey Chris, I forgot to tell you about the major hills here and the insane flight of steps..” Kate laughed and Chris couldn’t help but laugh with her. “I’m really glad that I decided to wear my flat boots today.”   
“You didn’t plan this?”  
“Nope. I’m winging it.”  
“So there’s no plans for the rest of the day?”  
“Well, ok…. I did make a phone call before I left work to some friends of mine at Agecroft and they told me to come by when the museum closed. They’ll give us a private tour of the house and grounds.”  
“Are you going to impress me with your knowledge of Tudor England?”  
“I might.”  
Chris smiled brightly. “Cool.” They were quiet for a long moment, watching the people mill around on the unusually warm November day. “I like that about you.”  
“What?”  
“How smart you are.”  
She chuckled. “I wouldn’t call knowing way too much about Tudor England smart. It’s mostly just useless trivia that would only be helpful to win me money on Jeopardy and that’s only if they had that category while I’m on there.”  
“You are, though. The way you assess situations and how creative you are…. You’re incredibly smart. It’s sexy.”  
Kate let out a loud laugh. “I’ll take your word for it.”  
“You should.”  
She stood up and held out her hand. “Ready?”  
“More walking?”  
“More walking.”  
He took her hand and stood up. “Where to now?”  
“There’s the mansion to walk around. I think it’s still open. Then Agecroft isn’t terribly far from here. We can hit Carytown for dinner after.”  
“Sounds good.”  
“So, can you tell me about this movie you’re leaving me to go film? Or is there a Marvel sniper ready to take you out?”  
“I can. It’s not Marvel so no one is going to shoot me.”  
“Good.”  
“It’s about a guy who’s sister died and he’s raising his niece. She’s really smart…. A child prodigy…. And he’s just trying to protect her and raise her like his sister would’ve wanted.”  
“Sounds lovely. And it sounds like you’re getting to stretch your legs a bit.”  
“Yeah. That’s why I picked it.”  
“Who’s in it besides you?”  
“Uh…. Octavia Spencer….”  
“From The Help?”  
“Yes.”  
“I love that movie! She was amazing. And she did Snowpiercer, too!”  
“Yeah.”  
“Sorry. I fangirled a bit. I love her. Who else?”  
“Jenny Slate.”  
“I know the name.”  
“A lot of people know her from Parks and Rec. She played the annoying sister of that annoying guy.”  
“Oh! Mona Lisa Samperstien.”  
“Yes. She’s not like that in real life.”  
Kate chuckled. “Good to know.”  
“She’s from the Boston area, too.”   
“Are you sure it’ll be ok for me to be on set?”  
“Of course! You can order anything you want to make you comfortable. You’ll be able to sit and watch the scenes we shoot on the monitor. Or just hang out in my trailer and watch TV or play video games. Whatever you want to do. When I’m not filming, we can explore Savannah or go to Atlanta. And then next month we’ll be at Disneyworld.”  
Kate smiled. “I’m looking forward to that the most.”  
“Promise me that I’ll get to buy you your first pair of ears.”  
“Ok, but only if I get to pick them out.”  
“Deal.” He grinned. “That’s the first thing you haven’t fought me on about buying you.”  
She rolled her eyes. “I just…. Don’t want a sugar daddy. I get that you have more money than any sane person knows what to do with thanks to Marvel, but I have my money…. And my pride…. And I like to feel independent.”  
“I know. I get it. I do. It’s just that I like to give back to the ones I care about most. Those that give me so much more than I feel like I could ever return.”  
“And what is it that I give you that warrants that?”  
He looked at her mischievously and said, “Dat ass” before bursting into his echoing laughter. She shook her head at him and wrapped her arms around his waist when he pulled her to him. “I’m sorry.” He said through laughter. “Sorry, I couldn’t resist.”  
“You’re ridiculous.”  
“Then we’re a great pair.” He smiled down at her, but noticed that her face had gone paler than it usually was and her eyes were wide. Chris followed her line of sight and saw a man walking towards them. “Who’s that?”  
“Someone I don’t want to be anywhere near.” She let go of Chris and hauled ass from both men. Chris glanced at the man who had stopped in his tracks and then went after Kate. He finally caught up to her after she’d veered off and gone behind the carriage house. She was standing behind one of the carriages peering out from behind it.  
“Kate?”  
“Shh!” She grabbed his hand and pulled him behind the carriage with her. “That’s my ex.”  
“The fiancé that treated you like shit and cheated on you?” She nodded and Chris stood up suddenly. He started to walk away from the shelter of the carriage, but she grabbed him again and pulled him back. “Kate….”  
“He’s not worth it.”  
“He’s got you running and hiding behind a carriage.”  
“Maybe it was an overreaction, but I just…. I don’t want to deal with him. I’ve done a great job avoiding him for the last few years.”  
Chris looked at her for a long moment, coming to a decision. He took his hat off and shoved it in his back pocket before taking off his sunglasses and hanging them off the collar of his shirt. He was clearly not trying to hide who he was anymore. “Kate this is really cool!” He said loudly. “I can see why your cousin got married here. It’s pretty perfect for a wedding.”  
“Chris!” She hissed at him, ducking further behind the carriage as he moved out in the open.  
“I’m pretty sure you shouldn’t be touching it, though, right?”  
Instinct made her step away from the carriage and Chris used her distraction by grabbing her hand and pulling her to him out in the open. She looked up at him in shock and then he suddenly kissed her, lifting her off her feet some as he stood up straight.  
“Kat?” A male voice said from a few feet away from them.  
Chris set her down but kept his arm around her waist. He turned them to face Kate’s ex-fiancé and her grip tightened on his waist until it was starting to hurt him. He shifted slightly to ease the grip, but she just gripped tighter.  
“Jackson.” Kate said, her voice icy.  
“I thought that was you. You’ve lost weight.” Jackson got a good look at Chris and his eyes widened. “Oh shit! Dude! You’re Captain America!”  
“I know.” Chris said, not offering his hand by way of greeting.  
“Are you filming a movie or something?” Jackson looked around for a camera crew.  
“No. My girlfriend is showing me the sights.”   
“Girlfriend?” Jackson looked at Kate and laughed. “There’s no way.”  
Kate’s face turned stormy and her eyes darkened. “What? Did you think I couldn’t do better than you?”  
“I….”  
“You thought wrong.”  
“I just gotta say, thanks man.” Chris said, his Boston accent starting to slip out. “If it weren’t for you being a complete douchebag and tossing her to the side like yesterday’s garbage, I wouldn’t have gotten to show her how a real man treats a woman as amazing as her. I’m seriously the luckiest guy in the world to have her next to me. And you’re a fucking asshole that’s probably never going to find happiness because you’re too busy shoving your cock into anything that moves.” He tightened his grip on Kate so he could steer her away. A few seconds later, he whispered, “I have no idea where we’re going to get out of here.”  
“Keep going straight and take a right after this next building.” Kate whispered back.  
“You ok?”  
“I can’t believe you just did that.”  
“He deserved worse.”  
“Put your hat back on.”  
“Embarrassed to be seen with me?”  
She laughed. “No. I just want you to myself. Can’t do that if you get mobbed.” They rounded the corner and both of them breathed a sigh of relief. “Did you look back at him?”  
“No. Did you?”  
“No.”  
Chris turned and peeked around the corner before ducking back quickly. “He’s still standing there. He might be drooling.”  
“Let’s get the fuck out of here before he comes back to himself.”  
He gestured at the large open space between them and the main building. “That’s a lot of ground to cover.”  
“We’ll go around.” She guided him down the path to the right and out into a small parking lot. They made their way around the outside of the park to the main parking lot in front of the welcome building. Kate checked the time on the car’s radio. “Ok, we can head over to Agecroft. It’s closing soon.”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Chris’s eyes got wide as they pulled up the drive to the old manor house. “Holy shit. This place is gorgeous.”  
“Wait till you see the courtyard and the gardens and the view from the back.” Kate said with a big grin. She parked the car and they got out. Chris snapped a few pictures on his cell phone before catching up to her. “It’s huge! I didn’t think it would be this big.”  
“That’s what she said.”   
He let out a loud laugh that echoed in the courtyard. She took them to a large, heavy wooden door to the right of the main gate. It led into a little lobby with a counter that had two cash registers.   
A woman in her early fifties came out from the back and smiled brightly. “Katie!”  
“Hi, Georgie.” Kate walked over behind the counter and hugged the woman warmly.  
“Who’s tall dark and handsome with you?”  
“This is my…. Boyfriend…. Chris.”  
“Why are you hesitating? I wouldn’t hesitate for a second to claim him.” Georgie shook Chris’s hand.  
“It’s a relatively new relationship. Still getting used to the labels.”  
“Well, Chris, welcome to Agecroft.”  
“Thank you. Kat’s told me a lot about it.”  
“She’s a big hit here when she dresses as Anne Boleyn.” Georgie turned to Kate. “By the way, your costume is safe and sound in my office.”  
“Thanks for letting me store it here. I’ve got no room in my closet for it.”  
“Hey, you should put it on and give Chris the tour.”  
Kat started to protest, but Chris cut her off. “I would love that.” He said, showing his excitement at the idea by bouncing on the balls of his feet with a twinkle in his eyes.  
“I’m sure you would.” Kate retorted.  
“Ok, so that’s decided. Katie, go back in my office and start getting dressed, I’ll come help you after I get the video started up for your tall glass of water.”  
Kate rolled her eyes, but did as she was told. Twenty minutes later, Chris was waiting patiently in the movie room. The introduction video had ended about five minutes before. The rustling of skirts sounded behind him and he turned.  
“Holy shit!” He exclaimed, a huge grin turning his face into a ball of happy light. “Kat…. You look incredible!”  
Kate was wearing a deep burgundy, velvet Tudor style dress that complimented her porcelain skin perfectly. The long sleeves were lined with lush dark brown velvet. The neckline was trimmed with the same velvet and bejeweled with red, amber, and clear jewels. The French hood she wore on her head was also trimmed in the velvet and jewels. She was wearing a chestnut colored wig that was pinned back behind the hood and fell in waves down her back. On her neck rested a perfect replica of Anne Boleyn’s famous ‘B’ necklace.  
To his surprise, she gave him a deep curtsy and said with a perfect British accent, “Thank you, milord. It would be my pleasure to escort you through this fine manor.”  
Georgie opened a door in the left corner of the room and held it open for them. “Enjoy the tour, Chris. Katie’s an expert at it at this point.”  
“Thanks!” He followed Kate down a hallway. “Kate, you seriously look amazing. I’m blown away.”  
She laughed. “Many thanks to you, good sir.” He followed her through the house, listening intently as she told him about the manor house’s history, daily life in the Tudor times, and about the large stained glass window that had made it intact across the ocean when the house had been brought over to America. She taught him a dance in the great hall by said window and told him about the tapestry that was hanging there.   
In the next room, she went behind a velvet rope and sat in a large chair with only three legs. The way she held herself and placed her hands delicately in her lap, she looked every bit the queen she was pretending to be. Chris found himself even more enamored with her as she told a story about Henry VIII writing the song ‘Greensleeves’ about her, Anne.   
Outside on the back lawn, she showed him a maze carved into the grass with a wrought iron bench for one in the middle of the maze. The game was for two men to start at the two entrances and make their way through the maze and the first one to the lady on the bench would win her favor. They headed over to the gardens and Kate explained how they were modeled after Hampton Court’s gardens. It was winter, so the flowers weren’t in bloom sadly, but the grass was lush and green and the herbs were on display.  
The last stop on the tour was the kitchen just across the courtyard from the main entrance. She feigned ignorance of how most of it worked since Anne wouldn’t have spent much time in a kitchen being the queen. He escorted her back to the main entrance where Georgie was waiting.  
“Did you have fun?” She asked.  
“More than I thought was possible.” Chris said.  
Kate curtsied to him again and begged his leave. She and Georgie disappeared into the back and fifteen minutes later, Kate reemerged as herself again. “That wig is ridiculously hot.” She said.  
“I’d imagine the whole outfit is hot.”  
“Not as bad as you’d think.”  
“So, Chris, how’d she do?” Georgie asked, coming out of the back.  
“She was amazing. And very informative.”  
“It’s too bad we can’t hire her on full time. She’d be an amazing addition to this place.” Georgie sighed. “Budget cuts won’t let us pay her what she’s worth. But thankfully she’s the sweetest thing and volunteers her time and historically accurate costume.”  
“You’ve paid me before.” Kate argued. “You won’t let me do everything for charity.”  
“Of course not! I’d be stupid if I did. You’re worth more than all of these part timers put together.” Georgie looked at Chris. “She took the pictures for the website. Did she tell you that?”  
“No. She didn’t mention it.” Chris said.  
“You should take a look. They’re pretty spectacular.”  
“I’ll definitely do that.”  
“Ok, kids, it’s dinnertime. Go down to Carytown and find yourself something yummy. Chris, it was lovely to meet you.”  
“It was great meeting you.” Chris shook Georgie’s hand and he and Kate left the way they’d come in. “Where’d you learn that accent?”  
“Believe it or not, watching British TV shows and listening to Benedict Cumberbatch. I just imitated it. It was bad, wasn’t it?”  
“No! If I had never met you, I would’ve thought you were actually from England.”  
“Oh, thank you.”  
They climbed in the car and Kate started it up as he said, “You didn’t break character once. It was amazing. You put me to shame.”  
“Oh, now I know you’re being polite.”  
“No! I’m being honest!”  
She shot him a look that clearly said she didn’t believe him, but chose to drop it. “What do you feel like eating?”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Kate looked across the table at Chris and watched him peruse the menu. They were at Galaxy Diner in a booth in the back. The guy at the front that had seated them had realized who Chris was and he’d ended up spending about thirty minutes signing autographs while Kate waited in the booth for him. The manager had finally shooed the other customers away and asked them to leave Chris and Kate in peace. From Kate’s position, she could see people towards the front turn and gawk. When they saw her looking, they’d quickly turn back around.  
“You’re hot news around here.” Kate said. “Not every day Richmond gets such a big star.”  
“Apparently you’re a big star, too. You got asked for an autograph.” Chris said with a laugh.  
She chuckled. “I didn’t expect that. Who do you think he thought I was?”  
Chris eyed her for a long moment, appreciating the beauty of the girl he called his. “I think he just saw what I saw.”  
“Dare I ask?”   
“He saw the most beautiful creature on the planet. I can’t argue with him.”  
She laughed and shook her head. “You’re insane.”  
“Maybe. But it doesn’t make you any less gorgeous.” He leaned across the table and kissed her quickly. “What did you sign?”  
“Kitty Monroe. Whenever I sign an autograph, it’s always at a burlesque show. So it was a knee jerk reaction.”  
“I don’t have Kitty’s autograph.”  
She laughed slightly. “I’ll sign a poster from the show Friday just for you.”  
“Awesome! I’m really looking forward to that. Scott is flying in for it that morning. I’ll go pick him up while you’re at work and we’ll figure out where to put him overnight.” Kate gave him a nervous smile, so he changed the subject. “So, what’s good here?”  
“Pretty much everything.”  
“What are you getting? You haven’t even glanced at the menu.”  
“Oh, I’m getting my usual.” She reached over and flipped his menu to the page with hot sandwiches on it. “I get the Aloha Chicken.”  
He took a moment to read it. “That sounds delicious.”  
“I get fries and mac cheese with it usually. Or the spiced apples.”  
Chris nodded and read through the menu. “I think I’m going to stick with your Hawaiian theme and get this Spicy Hawaiian Burger.”  
“Good choice. I hear it’s delicious.”  
The waitress came back and they placed their orders. The conversation flowed easily as it always did, but Kate noticed as the time went by, more and more people were crowding outside the entrance to the place. Chris finally noticed that her attention kept shifting to the front of the restaurant and he turned to look. There were about thirty people crowded on the sidewalk out front.  
“Well, that’s going to be fun to get through.” He commented, waving slightly at the crowd and causing screams to be heard from some of the women out there.  
“They’re definitely between us and my car.”  
Chris turned back around and casually glanced at the back of the room. There was a door that probably led to the outside by the bathrooms. “We could go out the back way, but that would mean having to run to the car.”  
“If you want to go talk to them and sign autographs, that’s ok.”  
“Kat, I’m here with you. I’m not going to ditch you to go be a celebrity.”  
“I don’t want anyone to stop liking you because you chose to avoid them. They’re your fans, Chris. They’re the reason you have such a great career. I insist that you go say hi.”  
“Kat….”  
“I’ve got the check when it comes. Go on.”  
He gave her a long look. “I’m an asshole just leaving you here.”  
She actually laughed at him. “And I’m the bitch making you do it. Chris, I’m fine. Seriously. Go.” He reached over and cupped her cheek for a moment. “I’ll meet you outside.” She watched him head out into the throng of people and listened to the excited squeals of some of the girls.  
The waitress came over and glanced at the scene. “So, you’re the lucky girl the internet has been blowing up over.”  
“What do you mean?” Kate asked, genuinely confused. She hadn’t checked the internet in the entire time Chris had been with her. It hadn’t even occurred to her.  
“I’ve seen a few articles about Chris Evans and his new girl. It said you were from Richmond, but it never gave your name. Either they’re really bad at their jobs or his people are keeping you under wraps.”  
“Oh…. “ Kate handed the girl her debit card. “For the check.”  
“I’ll get that right out to you.” She smiled at Kate and headed up to the register.  
While she waited, Kate’s cell phone started ringing. It was her friend Amy who was also in the burlesque world. She went by the name Harley Queen and she was the one who was putting on the Marvel show she’d told Chris about. “Hey, Amy!”  
“Kat! Guess who I just saw is actually in Richmond right now!” Amy said excitedly. She didn’t wait for Kate to guess. “It’s your future husband!”  
“Oh.”  
Amy laughed. “He’s in Carytown. I’m about to head that way. Wanna come? I’ll meet you somewhere.”  
“It’s ok. I’m already in Carytown.”  
“Have you met him? Oh my god, how weird is it that you were just in Boston and now he’s here?”  
Kate laughed slightly. “It’s…. Surreal.”  
“What’s wrong? You sound funky.”  
“I do?”  
“Where are you in Carytown? Can you see him? There’s, like, a mob of people around him.”  
“Yeah. I can see the mob.”   
“Are you gonna go see if you can talk to him?”  
“Hold on.” The waitress brought her the tab to sign and her debit card. “Thank you.”  
“You want me to call the cops to help you guys get to your car?” The girl asked.  
“Uh, no. That…. I don’t think that’ll be necessary. Thank you, though. And thank you for helping us out the last hour and a half.”  
“No problem. You two look good together.”  
“Thank you.” The waitress headed back to check on her other tables and Kate put the phone back to her ear. “Amy?”  
“Are you on a date?” Amy demanded. “How come you didn’t tell me you were going on a date?”  
“Well, I’ve been on a few dates with him now and I’m pretty sure we’re official.”  
“Wait, what? Since when?”  
“Look, I’ll fill you in later, ok? I promise.”  
“Come on, Kat! Spill!”  
Kate sighed. “He’s coming to the show Friday.”  
“What show?”  
“The show I’m doing last minute for Dalia. I sent you an invite on Facebook. Come to that and I’ll introduce you.”  
“Oh! I was coming to that anyway. I’m working the door that night.”  
“Ok. Then I’ll see you Friday and you will meet the boyfriend.”  
“I better.”  
“You will. I gotta go. Bye.” Kate hung up and looked at Chris. The crowd around him was thinning some, but passersby were stopping to stare. She took a deep breath and walked down the aisle towards the door. Most of the diners stared at her as she passed them, but she ignored them, instead waving at the manager and thanking him again for his help.  
Chris turned when he heard the door whoosh open. “Hey!” Kate smiled at him and put his baseball cap on her head. He’d left it in the booth with her. “Sorry guys, I’ve gotta go.” The crowd vocalized their disappointment, but thankfully they didn’t stop him from leaving. Chris wrapped his arm around her shoulders as they walked towards the car. “That looks good on you.”  
“I’m not a hat person.”  
“I think you look cute, but it’s my favorite hat.” He slipped it off her head and plopped it on top of his with a grin.  
“My friend Amy called me while you were out there. She wanted to tell me you were in town and causing a scene.”   
“Well that was nice of her. Did you tell her why I’m here?”  
Kate shook her head. “I’m gonna tell her when she meets you Friday. She might faint and it’ll take my mind off my nerves.” Chris chuckled at that as they slipped into her car. “Hey, um…. The waitress said something interesting to me. And you can tell me I’m stupid for believing it if it isn’t true cause I know not to believe everything I hear.”  
“What’s up?”  
“She said that there’s no way the press hasn’t figured out who I am by now and that, air quote, ‘your people’ were spending a lot of money to keep my name under wraps.”  
“Damn. She’s perceptive.”  
“So it’s true?”  
“Well, yeah. My publicist, Megan, called me before we came to Richmond and said she’s been fielding calls about you. She asked if I wanted to go public and I said not yet.”  
“Oh.”  
“Are you upset?”  
“Not at all. I’m just curious as to why didn’t you tell me.”  
“Because I honestly didn’t think it was that big of a deal. I want you to be completely comfortable with me before we even discuss going public. Which I think is so stupid that we even have to have that discussion.”  
Kate shrugged. “I didn’t even think about that discussion.”  
“And you shouldn’t have to. It’s just you and me in this relationship. Nobody else.” He took her hand. “I’m honestly not trying to hide you. I just want to protect you.”  
She squeezed his hand. “I get it. Having a private life seems to be hard in Hollywood. The paparazzi are assholes. It’s why I try to avoid pictures of you taken by them.”  
“Really?”  
“Yeah. Your private life is none of my business.” Chris chuckled and lifted an eyebrow at her. “Well, it wasn’t always.”  
He was quiet for a long moment, still holding her hand as she drove them away from Carytown. “Kat, if it’s ever too much for you, you’ll tell me, right?”  
She looked over at him with a reassuring smile. “Of course I will.”  
“Good.”  
She let her next question die on her tongue. She decided she didn’t want to hear the answer to ‘what happens if it does become too much’. In all honesty, she was quite attached to Chris. Getting to know who he really was and seeing the way he looked at her like she was the only person on the face of the earth…. She couldn’t help but fall for him.


	11. Chapter 11

Chris and Scott waited on the couch for Kate to finish collecting the things she would need for her show that evening. The last three days had flown by and Friday evening had snuck up on her. Kate had shown Chris pretty much everything he’d wanted to see and then some. He said he loved the artsy feel of Richmond and that he couldn’t wait to come back.  
The Allens seemed to really love Chris. They had had dinner together the last two nights. Jan was finally starting to warm up to her sister’s boyfriend. Bill had come home one day from work to take Chris out to lunch. Through the hour and a half meal, Kate’s step-father had grilled Chris on his intentions with Kate and how their relationship was going to work with all the obstacles in their way. If anything, it had scared Chris some, but it hadn’t shaken his resolve to have a relationship with the man’s daughter.  
Kate looked at herself in the mirror again and checked for anything that might need to be added. She had chosen to do her makeup at home since the upstairs of the venue where the performers hung out as their backstage area would be freezing and she didn’t feel like trying to do eyeliner with shaking hands. Her hair was up in rollers and when she took them out, she would just spray some hairspray in them to have large vampy waves resting on her shoulders and spilling down her back.  
“Need some help, babe?” Chris asked, standing in between the screens between the bedroom and the living area.  
“Um….” She appeared at the top of the stairs and he let out a loud whistle. “What?”  
“You look hot!” Her eyebrow quirked up and she looked at him like he’d lost his mind. “What? You do!”  
Scott appeared behind his brother and gave her a growl. “That glitter eyeshadow is fierce! How did you do that?”  
She shook her head at them. “You’re both crazy.”  
“That’s beside the point. What can I grab?” Chris asked, looking at the duffle bag, garment bag, and long gold box that held her feather fans sitting on her bed. Her makeup bag was in her hand.  
“I guess all of that on the bed is ready to be put in the trunk.”  
“What time did you need to be there?”  
“Seven.”  
“It’s a good thirty minute drive, right?” He glanced at his watch before he picked up the garment bag. “We need to leave soon.”   
“I know. I’m just making sure I have everything. Scott, can you grab the lighted mirror out of the middle cabinet up there?”   
“Sure.” Scott was headed that way when she disappeared in the bathroom again.  
Chris walked in a few moments later and stood in the doorway, watching her tie a pink handkerchief around the curlers. “You look gorgeous.”  
She looked at him in the mirror. “I’m so nervous.”  
“You’re going to be amazing.”  
“How do you know?”  
“I’ve seen your videos.” He put his hands on her hips and gazed at her over her head in the mirror. “Just breathe. This is just like any other show.”  
“Except its not. My private life and my burlesque life are about to collide in a major way. I try very hard to keep them separate because people are crazy these days. I don’t need another stalker and I….”  
“Another stalker? You’ve had one before?”  
“Yes. It didn’t get serious enough to take to the police, but I did have to threaten him with it once. He’s been gone for a couple of years now.”  
“What happened?”  
“I met him on this online dating site and he seemed really nice, but when I met him in person there just wasn’t anything there. I saw him as someone I could be friends with, but there just wasn’t any romantic spark. He didn’t understand that, I guess. He would always push things too far. I finally cut him off, but he still tried to contact me on my phone and any of my social media sites…. He contacted my friends and a couple of my family members. He’s the main reason I take such care to keep my private and public life separate.”  
“Do you not want me to come?”  
Kate turned and looked up at him. “No! I want you there. I’m just nervous and babbling.”  
He reached up and gently held the sides of her face. “Are you sure?”  
“Yes.” She smiled. “A thousand times yes!”  
“Ok. So let’s get moving.” He kissed her quickly, not wanting to ruin her makeup.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
There was already a line forming in front of the venue. Chris and Scott, loaded with her bags, mirror, and feather fans, followed her inside. She stopped to wave and say hi to some of the people there that called her stage name out. Inside, the place was busy with a performer doing a run through onstage, the door people were getting the till ready, the bartenders were getting set up, a few performers were helping set up chairs and watching the run through, and Dalia was in the back going through the set list with the sound guy.  
The raven haired producer of the show grinned brightly and let out a squeal when she spotted Kate. “Kitty!” The two women embraced tightly. “Thank you so, so, so much for doing this! You saved my ass.”  
“No problem.”  
“That Boston air did you right. You look fantastic!” Dalia looked over at Chris and Scott. “Who are these big, strong hunks?”   
“Dalia meet my boyfriend Chris and his brother Scott.”  
Dalia leaned in and whispered, “Your boyfriend looks a lot like Captain America.” She looked over at Kate and Kate just grinned at her. “Are you serious?”  
“Kitty Kat!” Amy quickly finished her descent down the stairs and rushed up to hug Kate tightly.  
“Harley!” Kate laughed.  
“All right, where is he? You promised I’d meet him.” Amy turned to look at Chris and Scott and her jaw dropped. “Holy shit! That’s….”  
“Chris and his brother Scott. Guys this is Dalia and Harley.”  
“I’m so confused right now.” Dalia said, her mouth opening and closing like a fish.  
Amy smacked Kate’s shoulder. “Are you serious right now?”  
“Ow!” Kate said, rubbing her shoulder.  
“You’re the Richmond girl he’s been dating?”  
“Apparently.”  
“Oh my god!” Amy went to smack Kate’s arm, but Kate dodged out of the way. “How in the world…. What…. When…. Boston!?”  
“Yes.”  
“Hi, Harley.” Chris said, tucking Kate under his arm to protect her from another slap. “It’s nice to meet you, Harley, and you, Dalia.”  
“It’s nice to meet you, too.” Dalia said. “I don’t even know what else to say right now.”  
“Holy shit, you’re Captain America! I just love your movies.” Amy said, shaking Chris’s hand emphatically. “I can’t believe you’re standing here and dating my friend. You guys are dating, right?”  
“I would say so, yeah.” Chris laughed.  
“Did you hypnotize him?” Amy asked Kate.  
“Yes. With my klutziness.” Kate said.  
“It started off rough, but it’s been smooth sailing lately.” Chris said. “Where do you want us to put this stuff?”  
“Upstairs.” Kate said.  
“I’ll show you.” Dalia said, giving Kate a wide eyed look as she led Chris and Scott to the stairs.  
Amy watched them for a minute then turned back to Kate. “What. The. Hell!?”  
“It’s a long story.” Kate said.  
“We’ve got time. The doors don’t open for another hour.”  
“I’ve got to finish getting ready.”  
“Come on! I’ll help you, but you’ve got to tell me everything.”  
Kate sighed and allowed Amy to drag her up the stairs. Dalia had directed them to Kate’s usual spot near the windows. Scott was plugging in her mirror and Dalia was trying desperately not to stare at Chris. “Hey, D? Scott needs a ticket. Chris is my plus one.”  
“I didn’t bring my usual plus one.” Amy said. “Scott can be mine.”  
“Oh, thanks.” Scott said.  
“You can repay her by buying lots of raffle tickets.” Kate said.  
“There’s a raffle?”  
“Yes there is.” Dalia said. “It’s a good one tonight. Speaking of, Kate, I need to bring you posters to sign for the VIPs and the raffle winner.”  
“I’m on the poster?” Kate asked. “That was fast.”  
“I had to rush order it for tonight, but yeah. You’re on the poster.”  
“Cool.”  
“I’ll bring you the set list, too.”  
“Who’s kitten for tonight? I need to get with her about set up.”  
“She’s new. Her name is Peachy Keen. I’ll send her up. I gave Jax the cues for your numbers already. You might want to double check with him.”  
“I will.” She waited till Dalia was at the stairs before she turned to Amy. Her friend was desperately trying not to gawk at Chris. “Amy. Hi! Wanna come with me to check on my cues with Jax?”  
“Huh? Oh!” Amy shook herself. “Yeah.”  
Kate looked at Chris and Scott. “Do you guys want anything from the bar?”  
“We’ll come check out what they have.” Chris said. He and Scott followed Amy and Kate back downstairs, stopping at the bar while the women continued on to the sound booth.  
“So, you met him in Boston?” Amy asked.  
“Yeah.” Kate glanced back at Chris laughing with his brother. “We literally bumped into each other and I landed in dog poop. He was a perfect gentleman. Gave me his jacket and walked me back to the hotel. Then he asked me to dinner to apologize and we just…. Hit it off.”  
Amy’s grin widened. “I always knew you and him would be so compatible if you could just meet.”  
“I bet a lot of people think that way.”  
“Yeah, but you are living the dream.” Kate glanced at Chris again and saw him covertly watching her with a smile on his face. “He’s head over heels for you.”  
Kate smiled to herself. “That’s a new look.” Jax said as they stopped at the sound booth. “You’re glowing.”  
“Did you see her boyfriend?” Amy asked. “Captain Freaking America himself!”  
“Yeah. I saw that. Congrats.”  
“You’re being very chill about this.”  
“How else am I supposed to be? Ok, Miss Monroe, let’s go over your cues.”  
Ten minutes later, Kate and Amy headed back upstairs to finish getting ready. Chris had bought her a Bold Rock Hard Cider and kissed her before she’d gone upstairs. She and Amy chatted while Amy worked on Kate’s hair. Occasionally, the other performers came up to say hi and introduce themselves and some asked if she’d seen that there was a “super-celebrity” downstairs. Amy was quick to make sure they knew he was Kate’s and to leave him alone.  
Finally, Kate was able to join Chris again a few minutes before the doors were scheduled to open. He gaped at her for a moment. “You look….”  
“Hot!” Scott interjected.  
Her first costume was a custom-made bra top in a pretty pattern of green, black, red, and purple. She had an underbust corset on that was littered with rhinestones in multiple colors. The skirt was made up of black spandex spankies that had strips of multicolored fabric pinned to it. The front strips were only in a single line while the strips in the back were layered on top of each other to create a Victorian bustle effect. When she moved, the strips bounced and waved. She was wearing five inch green heels with a purple ribbon tied around her ankles like the ribbon on ballet slippers. Her legs were accentuated by nude colored fishnets.  
“Thank you, Scott.” Kate purred, trying to slip into her Kitty Monroe persona.  
Chris shifted his weight, moving his hips slightly and clearly trying to readjust himself. “When do you go on?”  
“We’ve got another hour till the show starts and I’m the fifth act on. I close out the first half and I close out the show. I could smack Dalia for that. She knows I hate closing the show.”  
“Why?” Scott asked.  
“Cause that’s too much pressure. That’s where the headliner goes usually. I’m not a headliner.”  
“This poster says different.” Scott held up one of the posters he’d bought from Dalia. Her friend and mentor had put Kate’s picture in the middle of the others and made it slightly bigger with her name in bold letters around the image. “Would you please sign this? I’m a huge fan!”  
Kate giggled. “Of course.” She walked behind the bar and grabbed a silver Sharpie to sign the dark colored poster with. Scott produced a second one for her to sign that he’d gotten for Chris.  
“Can’t wait to sell this on eBay when you’re famous.”  
“Quit embarrassing her.” Chris said, wrapping his arm around her waist. “Fuck this corset is stiff.”  
“Clearly you’ve never done a period piece beyond the 20s.”  
“Nope.”  
“And this is looser and easier to wear than my Tudor corset.”  
“Chris sent me pictures of that.” Scott said. “You looked amazing.”  
“Thank you.”  
Peachy Keen, the kitten for the evening, timidly walked up to Kate. “Um, Kitty, can we go over your set up again? I just want to make sure everything is right.”  
Kate smiled. “Yeah. Excuse me, guys.” She kissed Chris quickly and followed Peachy behind the stage.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Chris and Scott cheered loudly as Kate took a bow at the end of the show. Dahlia had just brought each of the performers back out on stage for their curtain call. The audience was going crazy along with the Evans brothers. Dahlia waited until the audience had calmed down and then took a moment to thank the entire cast for being there before thanking Kate personally and calling her a lifesaver again. There was more applauding and the photographer took pictures of the cast as the audience filed out or waited to meet them.  
Scott ran out to the car and grabbed the large bouquet of stargazer lilies Chris had hidden in the trunk. When he came back, Chris was waiting in the lobby area where the vendors were set up. Kate was in front of the stage in the next room smiling, laughing, and taking pictures with people. A bachelorette party had come to the show that night and they were currently begging for pictures with Kate. Chris was watching her with a goofy grin on his face as he posed for a few pictures himself and signed a few autographs.  
“She looks like a natural in front of people.” Scott said, handing Chris the bouquet.   
“Yeah.” Chris said.  
“She might actually be able to handle your day job.”  
“Yeah.”  
Scott laughed at his brother and waved at Kate when she looked over at them. Her eyes widened in surprise when she saw the bouquet of her favorite flowers. Chris wiggled them at her with a smile and she excused herself from the group of people around her.   
She made her way over to Chris and he handed her the bouquet with a sweet kiss. “Chris, they’re beautiful! Thank you!”  
“You were incredible, baby. I couldn’t take my eyes off you.”  
“Neither could anyone else.” Scott said, kissing Kate’s cheek as he hugged her. “There was a moment you made me seriously contemplate going straight and giving this guy a run for his money.”  
Kate laughed. “Thank you, Scott.”  
Dahlia walked over and gave Kate’s arm a squeeze. “I’m going to head up and start doing the books. Are you guys cool to wait around?”  
“Is it ok if we don’t? Can you PayPal me? I want to start packing and head out.”  
“You sure?”  
“Yeah. I’ll see you later.”  
Dahlia blew Kate a kiss as she headed for the stairs. Amy walked up to them with a big grin on her face. “I think this was the best raffle we’ve ever done. You two are the talk of the night. Everyone wants a piece of you, Kitty. I swear I’ve been asked more about you tonight than I know the answers to.”  
“Oh.” Kate glanced at Chris. “Weird.”  
“Don’t worry. I’m keeping my mouth shut. It’s none of their business.”  
“Thank you.”  
“Are you guys heading out?”  
“Yeah. We’ve got an early morning and a long day tomorrow.”  
“Chris, when are you and Scott leaving town?”  
“I’m leaving Monday morning.” Chris said. “Scott is catching a red eye tomorrow night.”  
“Harley, it was a pleasure meeting you.” Scott said.  
“Me?” Amy laughed. “It was a pleasure meeting you two!”  
“Quit drooling.” Kate said, playfully nudging her friend’s arm. “We’re going upstairs to pack.”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Chris, Scott, and Kate sat around her living room later that night surrounded by the remnants of their Taco Bell trip watching one of the late-night talk shows. Kate was curled up with Chris under a white fuzzy blanket on her recliner while Scott lounged on the couch. Chris enjoyed the smell of her freshly washed hair and skin and didn’t mind that her still wet hair was soaking through his t-shirt. The fingers of his left hand drew random patterns on her hip while the fingers of his right hand entwined with hers.  
“You two look like you’ve been doing that for years.” Scott said.  
“Yeah?” Chris asked. He kissed the top of her head and wrapped his arms around her just a little tighter. “I hope we’ll get that chance.” Scott gave his brother a huge grin.  
“After we get done taking pictures in the morning,” Kate said, her face a soft pink from blushing at Chris’ words. “Chris and I were planning to go to Williamsburg and spend the day. You up for that, Scott?”  
“Of course!” Scott said. “I’ve got a rental car coming in the morning, so I’ll just follow you around.”  
“Why?”  
“Because I’m going to leave you guys in the late afternoon. Chris is taking you on a date tomorrow evening.”  
“He is, is he?” Kate looked up at Chris and he smiled back innocently.  
“Way to give my secret away, bro.” Chris said, tossing a cinnamon twist at Scott’s head. Scott actually caught it in his mouth and grinned at them. “Yeah, I made us a reservation at Le Yaca. That’s the place you were telling me about with the food you love, right?”  
Kate smiled. “Yeah.”  
“Scott is going to take you shopping for a dress to wear tomorrow at the outlets you were telling me about.”  
“I volunteered to be your gay BFF.” Scott said proudly.  
“I don’t have one of those, so thanks.” Kate laughed.  
“My pleasure!”  
She looked at Chris. “What will you be doing while we’re shopping?”  
“Buying myself a suit. I didn’t bring one and Scott forgot.” Chris said.  
“I said I was sorry.” Scott said.   
Kate let out a yawn that threatened to split her face in two. Chris chuckled. “Ok, I get the hint. Bedtime.”  
“I wasn’t hinting.” Kate said. “I didn’t even mean to let that one slip.”  
“Come on,” Chris wriggled out of the chair and helped her up, grabbing the blanket and setting it on the vacated recliner. “We’ve got an early morning and it’s already one in the morning.”  
“Here,” Kate pulled the coffee table out and then pulled the bottom of the couch out. She pushed the back of the couch down and the whole thing turned into a full-sized bed. Chris had gotten a fitted sheet and a comforter out of the laundry room and set it next to the couch. He picked them up and handed them to Scott.  
“That’s a cool couch.” Scott said.  
“Ikea.” Kate yawned again and Chris bent over suddenly, tossing her over his shoulder. She squeaked in surprise and he laughed.  
“Good night, Scott.” Chris said as he carried Kate towards the bed.  
“Night, guys.” Scott laughed.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
The photoshoot didn’t take long that morning. Only a couple of hours. Chris and Scott had been a huge help. They’d shown the two women some better poses and held the reflectors in just the right spots. They’d gone to the Richard Bland campus and taken pictures in the Japanese garden there. Chris had managed to fall into the stream leading to the pond and his entire backside was soaked. It had ended the shoot in laughter.  
They’d gotten to Williamsburg by eleven in the morning and had spent the day roaming around Colonial Williamsburg. They’d attended the witch trial and gone to the silversmith. Chris had bought a silver locket for Kate with her initials engraved on it. He’d made her promise to wear it on their date that evening.   
After spending the majority of the day in colonial times, they’d gone to the outlet mall and split up. Scott and Kate had gone through stores like whirlwinds. They picked a pretty ox blood colored, cotton, fit and flare dress with long sleeves made of lace. The hemline hit just above her knees and the neckline was a V-neck that complimented her graceful décolletage. They’d chosen a pair of nude pumps to go with it. There wasn’t a makeup store in the outlets, so Scott took her to the JCPenny Sephora a few miles away to get a quick makeover. He pulled half of her hair back and pinned it with a jeweled bobby pin he’d grabbed from JCPenny.  
“Ok, my work is done. Let’s get you to your date, Cinderella.” Scott declared.  
“Does that make you my fairy godmother?” Kate asked, following Scott out to the car.  
“Of course it does.” He held the door open for her before climbing into the driver’s side. After he put in the address on his GPS and started driving, he said, “Kat, I gotta tell you, I’ve never seen my brother happier. It’s hard to believe that it’s only been two weeks since you guys met.”  
“I have a hard time believing that myself.”  
Scott glanced at her. “I don’t want to scare you away because I like you a lot. You make my brother happy. I just feel like I should at least give you a heads up about his lifestyle.” She nodded, trying not to seem nervous. “It’s not exactly easy to deal with. Well, it’s not always easy to deal with. Most days are good, but he is away a lot and people pull his attention in a million directions at once. Sometimes he forgets to even just check in with the people he cares about. It can be a little frustrating. Then there’s the tabloids and the paparazzi. They’re not all nice. I know he’s managed to protect your identity from the media, but that’s not going to last for much longer. Hopefully they’ll leave you alone.” Kate nodded again. “Eventually he’ll take you to a premiere or a red-carpet event. You might have fun with that, though. I watched you handle the people at the show last night wanting pictures with you and you seemed pretty good at it. Being on a red carpet is basically the same thing just…. More.”  
“Thank you.”  
“For what?”  
“For being honest with me.”  
Scott eyed her for a moment. “Oh god! Are you going to break up with him?”  
“No.” She shook her head emphatically. “No! Definitely not. I want to have a relationship with Chris. I want the bad with the good. I just appreciate that you didn’t sugar coat any of it.”  
“I’m telling you, if you two can cope with the long distance thing, then you’ll go the distance.” Scott pulled into the parking lot and they spotted Chris waiting at the front door. The younger Evans brother reached over and gripped Kate’s hand. “I’m really glad he met you.”  
Kate smiled and kissed Scott’s cheek. “I’m really glad I met him, too.”  
“Go get him, Kitty.”  
She laughed as she got out of the car. Chris waved at Scott as he pulled away then turned to Kate. “Wow. You look gorgeous.”  
She reached up and adjusted his tie. “You don’t look too shabby yourself.” He was in a dark grey suit with a red tie that matched her dress. She suspected that Scott was to thank for that. “Did you and Scott have fun?”  
“Yeah! He’s a really good shopping buddy.”  
Chris laughed. “Are you ready for our big date?” He held his arm out.  
“Of course.” She took it and let him lead her inside. The place was busy, but they were escorted to a small, private room in the back of the restaurant where it was quiet. Chris held her seat out for her and pushed it in before sitting down across from her.  
“I’m glad we dressed up. This place is fancy.”  
Kate shrugged. “At dinner time it definitely is, but around lunch time it’s a little less fancy. I’ve seen people here in jeans.”  
Chris opened the menu. “So, what’s good here?”  
“Everything.” She laughed as she opened her menu. “I don’t think I’ve ever had anything bad here.”  
A waiter came to bring them water and see if they wanted anything else to drink. Chris decided to order a bottle of wine. The chef came out to their table and introduced himself. The man had a heavy French accent and was delighted when Kate started speaking to him in his native language. Chris watched her converse with the chef in French with a look of awe.  
Kate looked at Chris. “He suggests the beef tenderloin and the salmon.”  
“Salmon for the lady and beef for the gentleman.” Chef Tournet said. “She tells me her system can no longer handle la viande rouge. Si triste, mon cher!”   
“Red meat.” Kate translated.  
“Oh. Right.” Chris chuckled. “Well, then that’s what I’ll get with the salad.”  
“Et je vais avoir le saumon grillé d’Ecosse. Avec aux salad, aussi.”  
“C’est bon! Le garçon will bring your bread tout suite.” The chef kissed her knuckles before heading back to the kitchen.  
Kate looked back at Chris and laughed. “What’s wrong?”  
“I didn’t know you spoke French.” Chris said.  
She shrugged. “A little bit. When I worked in hotels, I met a lot of French Canadians. I had eight years of French from school, so I would talk to them in French as best I could. They always helped me where I stumbled and I ended up kind of fluent in it for a while.”  
“Sounds like you’re still fluent.”  
“I could probably get around Paris if I needed to.” The waiter brought out a basket of fresh baked French bread and a small plate of unsalted butter. They thanked him and each grabbed a piece. “Their bread is amazing.”  
“It smells amazing.” Chris said, holding his slice under his nose. “My trainer is going to kick my ass.” He bit in and made a quiet groaning sound, crossing his eyes comically. She laughed at him and he grinned back. “It’s delicious.”  
“I told you.”  
“So you did.” He reached across the table and took her hand. “Kat, I am ridiculously happy that I met you.”  
She blushed crimson and looked down at their clasped hands. “I’m happy I met you, too.”  
“So, it’s been two weeks and you said at the end of the two weeks, you would decide if you were going to send me packing or give us a shot. I’m fairly certain I know the answer, but I would love to hear you say it.”  
“Oh, I’m sending you packing. For sure. I just wanted to have some fun with Captain America.” Kate said, trying to stay dead serious. Chris just raised an eyebrow at her and she grinned. “Ok, you got me.”  
He actually blew out a breath. “You almost had me. Your poker face was good.”  
She laughed. “We’re going to do this, right? Try our hardest to make a long-distance relationship between us work?”  
“I’m willing to put in the effort if you are.”  
“Definitely.”  
“I have a small request, though.”  
“What’s that?”  
“If I want to spend money on you, like for gifts or airplane tickets, you won’t get mad at me for it. I know you like your independence, but you’re allowed to accept gifts from people. Especially your significant other.”  
“I know. I don’t mean to get pissy about it. I really don’t. It just takes me off guard.”  
“That makes me sad.”  
“I’m sorry.”  
“It’s not your fault. It’s just what you grew up with, with your dad and everything he put you and your mom through.” Chris took a deep breath, but before he could say what was on his mind, the waiter brought their salads out. He looked down at it and cocked his head. “There’s grapes!”  
Kate laughed. “Yeah. Trust me, they complement the vinaigrette dressing.”   
He looked at her skeptically, but took a forkful of lettuce leaves and half a grape and popped it into his mouth. After a moment of chewing, his head began to nod in approval. “Wow. That is good.” Kate smiled and took a bite of her salad. “So, listen, I have something big to tell you.”  
“The Academy finally acknowledged superhero movies and they’re giving you an Oscar for playing Cap?”  
Chris laughed and shook his head. “It’s actually not about me. It’s about you.”  
“Me? What did I do?”  
“I sent your pictures off to some photographer friends of mine. They all really, really like your work and Danielle wanted to know if you would be willing to meet with her.”  
Kate blinked at him for a minute. “Why?”  
“Why does she want to meet with you?”  
“Why did you send those pictures off?”  
“Because your pictures are amazing. And you love taking them. Watching you this morning, baby you glowed because you were having so much fun. I loved seeing that side of you. I wanted to see if there was any advice they could give you about successfully breaking into the photography field.” He reached across the table and took her hand. “Danielle works with some of the biggest names in the world. She answered me back yesterday and raved about the pictures I sent. She really wants to meet you.”  
“Why?”  
“She apparently has an opening for an assistant and second camera. She loved your pictures so much, she wants to interview you.”  
“This is a lot to take in.”  
“I know. I’m sorry. I was just really excited about your pictures and….”  
Kate gave his hand a squeeze and stood up. “I need to go to the restroom.”  
“Kat….”  
“I’m fine. Really. I just need to pee.” She turned and headed into the bathroom. It was empty, thankfully, and she moved into the bigger of the two stalls. Chris was handing her the opportunity of a lifetime: A chance to take pictures and learn the ins and outs of being a real photographer and be happy with her career. A chance to do something huge with her life. She shouldn’t be so freaked out about it, right?  
There was a knock on the bathroom door and a moment later, the door opened and Chris said, “Kat?”  
“You’re in the women’s restroom.”  
“Yeah, I got that. I also get that my girlfriend is hiding in here.” Kate stood up and flushed the toilet. She walked out of the stall and over to the sinks to wash her hands. “Are you hiding?”  
“I did actually have to go to the bathroom.”  
“Oh.”  
Kate tossed the towel in the bin and kissed him quickly. They headed back to their table and once they were seated, she looked across the table at Chris. “Ok, I was also hiding…. Just a little bit. I needed to process while I went. I wish you would have talked to me first before you sent the pictures.”  
“I should have, but I didn’t send them out for you to get a job interview. I wouldn’t even presume to force that on you. I honestly just wanted them to give you advice and help you weigh your options.”  
“Did your friend actually like the pictures or did she just say she liked them because you sent them to her?”  
“She actually liked the pictures. Danielle doesn’t fool around. She’s not fake. She was very enthusiastic about what she saw. She sent me an email and then called me when I didn’t respond within an hour.”  
“Where is she based?”  
“New York.” Kate blew out a breath. He reached over and took her hand. “Kat, I really think you should go for it. You’re insanely talented and you said yourself that you feel like a drifter in your own life because you don’t know what to do with your talents.”  
“This a lot, though. Like…. A lot. I mean, if I was to get the job, I would have to uproot my entire life. Leave my friends and my family. Move to a city I’ve only ever visited….” She looked at him and chuckled. “Well, I guess you know all about that.”  
“A little bit.”  
“I would need to talk it over with my family. It would be a big change for them, too.”  
“Of course.”  
“And I need to talk to Danielle, I guess…. Schedule a meeting with her for one weekend.”  
“You’ll like her. I promise. I really think you’ll be amazing at it, Kat.”  
“You may have too much confidence in me.”  
Chris gave her a grin. “You need to have more in yourself.” He lifted her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Kate sighed as Chris ran his fingers down her arm. He pressed kisses to her shoulder as he gently pushed himself into her again. Their lovemaking was slow tonight, both of them wanting to savor every single moment. She shuddered against him as he dragged himself along that sweet spot inside of her. Turning her head, she brought his lips to hers again and again.   
Chris pulled his face back when he tasted salty tears. “Please don’t cry.”  
“I’m sorry.” Kate wiped them away. “I don’t mean to.”  
“Kat….” His sentence trailed off as she fluttered around him. He pulled out of her and pulled her backwards to lay on her back. Moving up and settling himself between her legs, he pushed into her again.  
“You’re too far away.” Kate reached up and pulled him down to her.  
“I don’t want to crush you.”  
“I just want to feel every inch of you.”  
“We’ll see each other again soon, baby.” He brushed another tear off her cheek. “I promise you.”  
“I know. These two weeks with you….” Her fingers dug into his hips as he grazed that sweet spot again. “They’ve been the greatest thing that’s ever happened to me.”  
“Fuck….” He kissed her deeply. “The best is yet to come.”  
“I know.”  
“Do you know how lucky I am to have found you?”  
She laughed, which made them both groan in pleasure at the vibrations it caused. “I think I’m the one that won the lottery.” A tear leaked out of Chris’ eye and landed on her forehead. Kate reached up and pulled his lips down to hers again. “We shouldn’t be acting like this is goodbye.”  
“I want to savor you.” His teeth scraped behind her ear.  
“Chris!”  
He chuckled and she shuddered, raking her nails on either side of his spine. “Do you need more, baby?”  
“I need you.”  
“You have me.” She whimpered and Chris finally relented. He moved faster and pushed harder. Their grunts and groans became animalistic. Sweat broke out on their bodies. Finally, hours later, they laid in the moonlight and stared into each others eyes.   
“How has it only been two weeks?” Chris asked, running a hand through her hair. “I feel like I’ve known you my entire life.”  
“To be fair, I’ve known about you for a good portion of mine.”  
He chuckled and kissed her. “That is true, but you feel what I feel, don’t you, Kat?”  
Kate stroked his beard, adoring the look of hope in his eyes. “I do feel it, Chris.”  
He smiled and kissed the tip of her nose. “I don’t want to leave this bed.”  
“So don’t. Stay here. We can be like the grandparents in Willy Wonka.”  
Chris laughed quietly, pulling her closer against him as he started to drift off. “You’re ridiculous.”  
She kissed the hollow just below his neck. “You’re ridiculous, too.”


	12. Chapter 12

Kate made her way down to baggage claim at the Orlando airport and looked around nervously. The last month and a half of her life had been a whirlwind. She’d quit her job, moved to an apartment in New York City with her friend April, and started working for Chris’ photographer friend Danielle. Since then, her days had been filled with learning the ropes of the photography business and assisting Danielle. Her nights had been filled with learning how to live in a big city, phone calls to her family, and video chats with her boyfriend.   
The trip to Disneyworld with Chris and his family was the first time she was getting to see Chris in person since he’d left Richmond in November. She’d never gotten a weekend free to go down to Georgia for a visit. She had seen Scott, though. He spent a lot of time in NYC and had helped her move in. He’d also shown her around the city and helped her learn how to avoid the paparazzi. It wasn’t long after Chris had left Richmond that her name and life story had been plastered all over the internet and entertainment news. Her relationship with Chris Evans had been outed and everyone wanted to know more about her.  
Speaking of Chris….  
Her face broke out into a huge grin when she spotted him waiting for her instead of a driver. He was scanning the crowd of people, but hadn’t seen her yet. She realized she was wearing the Disneyworld baseball cap April had given her for the trip. Kate pulled it off and slipped her wrist through the hole in the back. Chris finally spotted her as she was getting off the escalator. He rushed forward, almost knocking over someone’s luggage and another person, and pulled her to him in a bear hug.  
“I’ve missed you!” He cried, pulling her off her feet.  
She wrapped her legs around his waist and kissed him, knocking his hat off his head in the process. “I’ve missed you!”  
They laughed as he set her down and she returned his hat to his head. He kept his arm around her waist as he gave her a quick kiss and took her carryon bag from her. They rolled it towards the baggage carousel that was already starting to send luggage around from her flight. “How was the flight?”  
“I have no idea.” She put her hat back on and pulled her ponytail through the back. “I slept through it.”   
“Really?”  
“Yeah! I’ve been non-stop with Danielle the last week getting ready for the next couple of weeks off and I’ve been so tired lately. I’m like the cat-nap queen now.”  
“She’s still treating you good, right?”  
“Of course! She’s so sweet and I’m insanely grateful she gave me these two weeks off even though I’ve only worked with her for a month.”  
“That was awesome of her.”  
“Oh, that’s mine!” She moved to get the baggage, but Chris handed her the carryon handle and went after the larger piece of luggage. “And that.” She pointed sheepishly at the second, medium sized luggage.  
“Three bags?” Chris asked, his eyebrow cocking up in amusement.  
“I have no idea what the plans are. You haven’t told me. So I packed a lot of shit to be prepared for anything.”  
“Oh!” He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a pink MagicBand. “This is yours.”  
Her eyes lit up and she did a little jump, making him laugh. “This is real!” She said as she put on the MagicBand. “I’m really going to Disneyworld!”   
“You really are.” He grabbed the handles on both pieces of luggage and started to walk them towards the exit.   
Kate looked up at Chris. “You’re not allowed to make fun of me if I start bawling at any point for weird reasons, ok?”  
Chris laughed. “I’m not promising anything.”  
“Gee, thanks.” She stuck her tongue out at him.  
“Where did you get the hat?”  
“April. She bought it when she was here last and gave it to me to wear.” A blast of warm air hit them when the doors opened and they both grinned. They piled her luggage in the private car’s trunk and climbed into the backseat. “So, where are we staying?”  
“We’re at the Contemporary Resort. You and I have our own room.”  
“Fancy. Where is everyone?”  
“We got here a couple of hours ago. I sent them on ahead, but they’re really excited to see you.”  
“I’m excited to see them, too. Carly, Shanna, and I have been texting almost non-stop. Have you just been hanging at the airport waiting for me?”  
“I was too excited to just sit at the hotel waiting.”  
Kate laughed and leaned across the seat to kiss him. She glanced over to make sure the partition was up before climbing on top of him and deepening the kiss. He laughed against her mouth as he pulled her closer. His hands roamed up her shirt, feeling as much skin as he could.  
“I really missed you.” She said, lips still pressed against his.  
“I missed you, too.” His hips bucked up and she could feel him straining against his jeans. “As much as I want you right now, I don’t want our first time together again to be in the back of a car.”  
Kate pulled back with a dramatic gasp and gingerly placed her hand over her heart in shock. “Why, Christopher Robert Evans! You want to defile me in the sacred House of Mouse?”  
Chris laughed. “Gotta make your first time here as memorable as possible.”  
She pretended to think about the answer, playfully grinding herself down on him. “If I have to wait for the really good stuff with you, then can we at least make out like teenagers on the way there?”  
He pulled her lips back to his as his answer. The drive was a good thirty minutes, but when Chris started seeing signs for Disneyworld when they came up for air, he gently pushed Kate back. “We’re almost there.”  
“I almost don’t care.” She kissed him again, but moved back to her side of the backseat. Her eyes widened and her face lit up as she saw the big golf ball at Epcot. “Oh my god! Chris!” She turned her wide blue eyes on his and he beamed at her. “That’s Epcot!”  
“We’ll be heading there the day after tomorrow.” As they kept driving, he pointed out the Seven Seas Lagoon and the spires of Space Mountain. “And when we get up to the room, I’ve got a surprise for you.”  
“I can’t believe I’m actually here.” She had tears shining in her eyes and he couldn’t help but lean over and kiss her. She took his face in her hands and stroked her thumbs over his cheeks. “Thank you, Chris. This means so much to me.”  
“You are more than welcome, Kat.” He kissed her again. “We’re all checked in according to mom, so we can just head up to our room. We’ll meet them in a little bit for dinner at the California Grill. It has a panoramic view of everything.”  
“Ok.”  
A concierge came and took her bags up to their room for them. They did a quick tour of the grounds before heading upstairs. Chris moved in front of her and opened the door with his MagicBand. “Ok, no peaking.” He covered her eyes and guided her into the room. She moved tentatively as he walked them out onto the balcony. The sun was beginning to set and it was a perfect view of the Magic Kingdom. “Ready?” She nodded and he dropped his hands.  
Kate let out a gasp at the view of Cinderella’s Castle and she gripped his hand tightly as she started to cry. “Oh my god, Chris! This is amazing.”  
He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulled her back against him, and rested his chin on the top of her head. “I thought the view would make you happy.”  
“This whole trip makes me happy! I’ve seen it in pictures, but it’s actually here in front of me. I’m actually here!” She turned in his arms and wrapped hers around his neck. “I’m here because of you and you’re incredible family. Thank you so much, Chris!”   
He leaned down and kissed her, lifting her off her feet. “Now I’m going to defile you in the sacred House of Mouse.” She laughed as he carried her back inside and dropped them both to the bed.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Chris knocked on the door of the bathroom and was greeted by another retch. Kate had disappeared in the bathroom not long after they’d woken up. “Babe?” He called. She groaned in response and he opened the door.  
“Oh, Chris…. I’m so sorry.” Her head was laying on the toilet seat.  
He walked over and squatted down in front of her, smoothing her hair back. “Why are you apologizing?”  
“I think I ate something that really didn’t agree with me.”  
“That’s nothing to apologize for.”  
“It’s our first day at Disney and so far I’m spending it throwing up. You should go on without me.”  
Chris sat down next to her. “I’m not going anywhere, Kat.”  
“I think I’ll feel better once I get the food out of my system.”  
“What did you eat?”  
“Um…. For lunch I had some airport food.”  
“We got the same thing last night, so I don’t think it was dinner.”  
“It was probably the airport food.” Another bout of nausea overcame her and she turned her face back to the bowl. Chris acted quickly and grabbed her hair, holding it back from her face.  
An hour later, they were laying on the bed together. Chris stroked her hair and the arm that was slung over his torso. She was snoring softly as she napped on his chest. He’d called his family and told them to go on without him and Kat. Kissing the top of her head, he laid his own back and closed his eyes.  
Kat stirred and he looked down at her. “Hey.”  
“Hi.” Kat said, checking to make sure she hadn’t drooled on him.  
“How are you feeling?” He helped her sit up and brushed her hair back from her face, searching for any sign of illness.  
“Uh, I’m ok.” She stretched and wiggled a bit. “I don’t feel like I’m going to throw up my insides anymore.”  
“Yeah?”  
“Yeah. I want to brush my teeth again, though, and then we can go to the park.”  
“Are you sure you feel up to it?”  
“I think so.”   
“We can take it easy. There’s lots of walking and plenty of places to sit down if you need to.” He followed her to the bathroom. “I don’t want you to get sick again.”  
“I really think I’m ok.” She looked in the mirror and cringed at her hair. “Yikes. That’s not ok, though.”  
Chris chuckled and picked up her hairbrush. “You brush your teeth. I’ve got your hair.”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Kate wiped at her eyes for the thousandth time that day. She and Chris were walking out of Princess Fairytale Hall where she had just met Princess Aurora and Cinderella. When Aurora had hugged her, Kate had actually started to sob and then immediately started apologizing for it. The pictures she took were absolutely priceless.  
Chris kissed her again as they made it out into the sunshine and grinned at her. “And I thought I was a weepy one.”  
“I swear, I’m not usually like this. I don’t know why I’m so overly emotional!” Kate laughed. “I’m almost terrified to meet Belle at Epcot tomorrow.”  
He laughed as he tucked her under his arm. “Come on, let’s go meet mom by the teacups.”   
They spotted Lisa watching her daughters and grandkids spin themselves silly on the teacups. Scott stood with her taking pictures. She saw Chris and Kate walk up and smiled. “Did you two have fun?”  
“She cried again!” Chris laughed.  
“Don’t pick on her.” Lisa wrapped Kate in a protective hug. “It’s her first trip here. She’s just excited.”  
“I think it’s insanely adorable.” He kissed the side of her head.  
“How are you feeling?” Scott asked.   
“I’m ok.” Kate said. “Got a little dizzy on the Little Mermaid ride, weirdly, but my stomach isn’t flipping around anymore.”  
Lisa reached up and placed her hand on Kate’s forehead, checking her temperature. “You’re a little warm.”  
“I think it was just a bad reaction to the airport food. I’ve been living off hot tea, salads, and sushi for the last few weeks.”  
“No wonder you’ve lost weight.” Carly said, walking up. “We’ll make sure to feed you really good on this trip.”  
Kate laughed. “Thank you! I’m looking forward to eating some big meals.”  
“Ok, our FastPass for the Mine Train is in five minutes.” Scott announced. “Let’s go!”  
Chris took Kate’s hand and they followed the group over to the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. They got in line and Carly started French braiding Shanna’s hair. When she was done, she held her hands out towards Kate. “Want me to get your hair out of your face?”  
“Oh! Uh, sure.” Kate smiled slightly as Carly turned her around and started braiding her hair. They walked and braided as the line moved. By the time Carly finished maneuvering Kate’s long hair into two matching braids on either side of her head, they were at the front and being directed into which lane to go to. “Thank you, Carly.”  
“Don’t mention it.” Carly said, quickly braiding her hair back as she moved into line with Miles.   
Chris wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her cheek. “My family is more in love with you than they are with me.”  
Kate laughed as they moved past the gate and boarded the train. “I doubt that.”   
“Trust me. They adore you.” They pulled their lap bars down. “I don’t think Carly has ever offered to braid the hair of any of the other girlfriends I’ve brought home. All two of them.”  
“Oh. Well, I kind of adore them, too.”  
He reached over and laced his fingers with hers. “Good.”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Their fifth day at Disneyworld, Kate was once again throwing up in the morning. She’d been nauseous on and off throughout the week, but she just chalked it up to rich foods, thrill rides, and the over-emotional state she was constantly in being at Disneyworld with the Evans. Chris held her hair back and grabbed a washcloth. He helped her back to bed and sat down beside her. “Kat, I think there might be something wrong with you.”  
“It’s just all the food and the excitement. My system isn’t used to it.” Kate groaned and hid her face to keep the world from spinning.  
“Babe, I really think we should get you to a doctor.”  
There was a knock on the door and Lisa’s voice floated into the room. “Is everything all right in there?”  
Chris opened the door. “Hey ma.”  
“Oh no! Sick again?” Lisa said, walking over to the bed. She felt Kate’s forehead and moved her hair away from her face. “Ok, we’re going to the doctor.”  
“No.” Kate moaned. “I don’t want to ruin our last full day here.”  
“I wouldn’t have any fun knowing you’re lying here and miserable.” Lisa gestured at Chris to help and Chris leaned down and swept Kate into his arms.   
An hour later, Kate was sitting on the table and Chris stood next to her, holding her hand. “I feel fine now.” Kate insisted.  
“The nurse said the doctor wouldn’t be long.” Chris said. “Let’s just talk to them. Tell them your symptoms and find out what’s wrong.”  
“We should be at Animal Kingdom again. I want another Dole Whip with rum.”  
“We will get you another Dole Whip with rum today. After we leave here.”  
“I’m telling you, it’s a combination of the weather and the Disney excitement and all the rich foods. My diet hasn’t been great or consistent since I moved to New York. I’m still trying to figure out my schedule. Plus, I’m so busy so I’m super tired.”  
“Kat, let’s just see what the doctor says, ok?” His tone left no room for argument.  
She sighed. “Fine.” After a long, silent minute, Kate looked up at Chris. “Who knew uprooting my life was the key to losing fifteen pounds in a month?”  
“I’m pretty sure that’s not healthy.”  
“I’m pretty sure I had it to lose. I was a size fourteen before. I’m a size ten now. Or twelve depending on the store.”  
“I’ve said it a million times: you are perfect, Kat.” He lifted their entwined fingers to his lips and kissed her knuckles.  
The doctor came in a minute later. She got right down to business, asking questions about what Kate’s symptoms were and making notes about them before asking more questions about possible other symptoms Kate may not have noticed. She looked over the chart that the nurse had filled out with Kate’s blood pressure, height, weight, and temperature. “Kate, have you considered that you may be pregnant?”  
Kate let out a loud bark of a laugh. “Oh god no! I have an IUD.”  
The doctor shook her head, not finding the humor. “We need to do a pregnancy test. I’ll get one ordered. If it’s positive, we need to do some blood work and talk about what happens with a pregnancy when an IUD is involved. I’ll be back.” She stood up and walked out of the room.  
Kate looked up at Chris and laughed. “I think she might be crazy. We should get out of here.” Chris wasn’t laughing. He looked like he might faint. “Chris?”  
“Yeah?”  
“Look at me.” He turned his head slowly. “This isn’t happening, ok? I’m not pregnant. We’ve only known each other for barely two months. I haven’t seen you for most of that time. I have an IUD. I’m pretty sure they’re like being temporarily sterilized. That’s one of the reasons I chose this form of birth control. I’m not pregnant, ok?” She laughed hysterically and shook her head. “There’s no way.”  
Chris sat down heavily in one of the chairs. Neither of them spoke even after the nurse came in with a cup and directed Kate to a bathroom. They sat in silence until the doctor came back and announced that the test was positive. She started talking about statistics of a pregnancy with an IUD and what would need to be done to insure the baby’s safety as well as Kate’s safety. The two of them just stared wide eyed at the doctor, nodding occasionally.  
Lisa was sitting patiently in the waiting room texting her family when the very stunned couple walked out. Kate had a bandage on her arm where they had drawn blood for blood work and she was gripping her discharge paperwork and some pamphlets tightly in one hand. Lisa immediately went into worried mother mode. She ushered them to the car and tried to get them to tell her exactly what was wrong. It wasn’t until they were pulling into the resort that Chris finally blurted out the news.  
“Oh.” Lisa said, looking at her son’s shocked face and Kate’s completely blank face.   
“This isn’t possible. I have an IUD.” Kate said. She was clinging to that fact like it would make the situation disappear.  
Lisa led them to the elevators “I think you two have some talking to do.” She ushered them onto the elevator and pushed their floor’s button. “For the record, I think you two will be ok. Clearly this baby was meant to be if it had to go through such an obstacle to get here.” She backed out of the elevator before the doors closed and left Kate and Chris to go up to their room on their own.  
They made their way back in a haze. Chris seemed to forget that he didn’t have a key to the door for a long moment. He searched his pockets and wallet, coming up keyless. Finally, he held his Magic Band to the lock and it opened for them. He held the door for her and she shuffled inside. Her knees gave out and she plopped down onto the bed. He followed suit and the two of them sat there, staring at the floor for a long few minutes.  
“Chris….” Kate said at the same time Chris said, “I’m so sorry.”  
“What are you sorry for?” Kate asked.  
“I should’ve been more careful.”  
“I have an IUD.”  
“Kat, you’ve gotta give that one up. Clearly it fucking failed!”   
Kate blinked and looked away, bursting into tears. “I’m so sorry, Chris! I’m sorry!” He reached out and wrapped her in his arms, instantly regretting his harsh tone as she shook with wracking sobs. “What are we going to do? We’ve only known each other for two months. You have your career. I just started my new job in New York. I just moved! I don’t want to ruin either of our lives! Oh god!”  
“Babe, calm down. Breathe.”  
“How are you not overwhelmed!?” Chris’ eyes widened when her voice turned into a yell. “I don’t know what to do.” She began sobbing again.  
“We will figure this out.”   
“I’m not even close to ready to become a mom.” She wailed from behind her hands.   
Chris swallowed the sudden lump that was in his throat. This was her body. He couldn’t ask her to pop out a child she didn’t want. If she wanted to…. End…. The pregnancy, that was entirely her choice. “Kat, if you don’t want to keep the baby, I won’t….” He took a deep, shaky breath. “I won’t stop you.”  
Her head shot up and she looked over at him like he’d lost his mind. “Do you mean have an abortion?”   
He looked away, desperately trying to hold back the tears. “If that’s what you want to do.”  
Kate blinked for a moment. She reached over and turned his face to her. When she spoke, her voice was clear and strong despite the tears falling down her cheeks. “No. Absolutely no. That’s not what I want to do.” She took his hands. “I don’t believe in abortion unless it’s an extreme circumstance. Which…. This is not one of those. We were both willing participants and this is the outcome of our actions. I just…. I don’t know how to process the fact that my life just changed in a massive way for the third time in two months.”  
Chris took a deep breath. “Both our lives are going to change. Drastically.”  
“What are we going to do, Chris?”  
He stood up and grabbed his tablet. Flipping to his calendar, he pointed out his schedule. “I can talk to Meagan and have her move some things around and drop me out of some of them. I’ve got to start the press tour for the next Cap movie in a few months….”  
“What does that mean?”  
“It means….” He took another deep breath and looked over at her. “We’ve got some time. You and I can maybe find a place together in New York and start figuring out our life as Chris and Kate plus one. We figure out how to be parents…. Together.”  
“Ok.”   
“I won’t lie to you. It’s not going to be easy, Kat. I’m going to be away filming and promoting at times and your career is just starting.” He took her hands firmly in his. “I can promise that I will do everything in my power to make this work if you can make me the same promise.”  
Kate studied his eyes for a long moment before nodding. “I can promise that, too.”  
He gave her a small smile and leaned in to kiss her. Before his lips met hers, she yanked her hands away from him and ran for the bathroom. He was right behind her and caught her hair behind her head just as she retched into the toilet. When it was over, they sat together on the bathroom floor with their backs against the bathtub. He had an arm wrapped around her shoulders and her head was resting against his chest.  
“Do you think your mom has told everyone else?” Kate asked.  
“I doubt it.” Chris said. “She’s good at keeping secrets. We could tell everyone next week at Christmastown.”  
“I’ve got to make an appointment with my doctor.” She sighed. “Fuck, I’ve got to find a doctor. I haven’t even thought about doing that yet.”  
“Why don’t you just use your doctor in Virginia for now? The doctor here did say that you need an ultrasound done as soon as possible to make sure everything is ok.”  
“That’s what I’ll have to do.” Kate sighed again. “Chris?”  
“Yeah?”  
She looked up at him. “I’m scared.”  
He turned his head and looked at her. “I’m scared, too.”  
They stared at each other for a long moment. Kate closed her eyes for a moment and Chris kissed her forehead. After another minute, she started to stand up. Chris jumped up first and helped her to her feet. They were flying to Virginia in two days, so Kate called her doctor and made an appointment for the morning after they got there. They decided to go to Animal Kingdom for the rest of the day and try to enjoy their last days at Disneyworld before they blew their lives up completely.


	13. Chapter 13

Kate and Chris followed the realtor around the two-story penthouse apartment. They were on the very edge of Tribeca with a great view of the Brooklyn Bridge. They had spent the last week looking at apartments. It had been three months since they had found out they were going to be parents. Chris had had to deal with some previous obligations, so their moving in together had been delayed some.  
Scott spent a lot of time in New York, so he had been keeping Kate company. The press had gotten wind of Kate’s pregnancy. One of the nurses at the hospital in Florida had leaked the information to a local station. Then the twenty-four-hour news cycle had picked up the story while Kate and the Evans’ family were in the air flying to Virginia. By the time they landed, the whole world knew Chris Evans was going to be a dad. His family had been shocked, but excited.   
Kate’s family, however, hadn’t been pleased. They were worried that their daughter hadn’t been in her relationship long enough and that she didn’t truly understand what she was taking on. Chris and Kate had spent a solid three hours with the serious grilling her parents had dished out. Chris had sworn (multiple times) that he was going to take care of Kate and their baby. In the end, they were still worried, but a little less so. The trip to Christmastown at Busch Gardens with both families together had been helpful assuaging the Allen’s fears some.  
Since the news broke, the paparazzi had made it their mission to get as much as they could about Chris’s baby mama. Kate was almost constantly hounded for pictures and information. Her family was contacted on a regular basis. Even her biological father had been tracked down. That hadn’t gone over well with Kate. Especially since the man had tried to contact her. She had had a complete nervous breakdown over it which landed her in the hospital overnight. Lisa had come to be with Kate since she could get there faster than anyone. She had stayed with Kate until Chris had gotten there.  
Kate had also been worried about everything affecting her new job, but Danielle had assured her not to worry about it. Chris gave her as much advice as possible. He had decided to ask Megan to help Kate out so she didn’t have to deal with the press hounding her. Kate was in almost constant contact with his publicist and had quickly become friends with her.  
When Chris had finally come to New York to stay for a while, he and Kate had had their first true argument. He had lined up apartments to look at that were well out of her price point. She hadn’t found it fair that she couldn’t pay her half of the rent. After yelling at each other for over an hour and running April out of the apartment, they had finally come to a compromise that he would take care of the rent and she could pay the utilities. So, here they were, following the realtor around their fourth apartment in three days.  
“This one has five bedrooms.” Lacy the realtor said. “The view of the Bridge from both of the terraces is just gorgeous! The kitchen has all the best, state of the art appliances.” She led them around the wall and into the living room. “And just look at that view from the great room!”  
“It’s beautiful.” Kate said.  
“The fireplace is fully functional. Gas, of course.”  
“Of course.”  
“And this…. This is my favorite feature!” Lacy led them back around the wall into the kitchen and did her best Vanna White impression to show off the huge bookcase that framed the stairs. “I remember you mentioning having a lot of books, Kate. This would be perfect for you.”  
“That’s pretty unique.” Chris said, admiring the bookshelf as they walked up the stairs.  
“This apartment is unique. Each bedroom has its own bathroom. Even the guest bedroom on the first floor. The master bedroom is just grand! So much room! You have a walk-through closet with plenty of storage space. And there’s a bedroom right across the hall from the master.” Lacy’s eyes drifted to Kate’s baby bump. “Perfect for a nursery.” Kate rolled her eyes at Chris and he squeezed her hand. “The terrace is just up here.” Lacy led them up another flight of stairs and opened the doors to the private roof terrace. “It’s so cozy, yet so open.”  
“And it has a hot tub.” Kate said.  
“That’ll be your best friend after you give birth. Trust me.” Chris squeezed Kate’s hand again to keep her from snapping at the woman. “You’ll need that escape for some mommy/daddy time. So, what do you guys think?”  
Chris looked at Kate. “I love the view.”  
“It’s beautiful.” Kate agreed, heading back inside and down to the master bedroom.  
“I’ll give you two a minute to talk.” Lacy walked out of the room.  
“What’s wrong, babe?” Chris asked as she explored the walk-through closet, opening and closing the closet doors. “This place is great. It has plenty of bedrooms for when our families come to visit. There’s that huge terrace with grass for the dogs on the first floor. That kitchen is exactly the one you were hoping for. That cool built-in bookshelf by the stairs is amazing.” He took her hand and led her to the room across from the master bedroom. “And she may be sticking her nose where it doesn’t belong, but she’s right about this room being perfect for the nursery.” He wrapped his arms around her waist and placed his hands on her bump. “I can just picture the crib right there and your glider right there….”  
“It’s a lot of money.” Kate said.  
“Hey, we talked about this. You’re not supposed to worry about that.”  
“I know. I know! I just feel so guilty….”  
Chris shook his head and turned her around to face him. “No guilt. Ok? My little family here deserves the best and if I can provide that for you guys, I will.” Kate beamed up at him. “What?”  
“You called me your family.”  
He shrugged and gave her a lopsided smile. “Well, yeah. You and Jelly Bean…. You’re my family.”  
“Are you sure you don’t want to know if Jelly Bean is watermelon pink or blueberry blue?”  
Chris laughed. “I’m sure.” He kissed her quickly. “So, what about this place?”  
“Let’s do it.”  
“Yeah?”  
“Yeah.”  
His face broke out into a huge grin and he pulled her to him. They both laughed as he lifted her up into his arms and carried her out of the bedroom. Lacy was waiting in the kitchen, scrolling through her tablet. “We’ll take it.” They both announced.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Scott and Kate stood side by side watching the movers maneuver the couch into place while Gally and Dodger checked the new place out. Chris had gotten Dodger while in Savannah filming and Kate had instantly taken to the sweet dog. Dodger had been staying with her in New York while Chris had been gone. Poor Gally had been annoyed at having to move, then having to put up with a new dog, and then having to move again. Dodger had been good for the older dog, though. He got Gally to move around and explore. He was also super protective of Kate. He had quickly figured out that she was pregnant and had taken it upon himself to be her protector. Sometimes he wouldn’t even let Chris near her.  
The movers looked over for approval and Scott directed them to adjust the couch slightly to the right. This had been the routine all day. The living room was the last of the rooms to get furnished. Kate and Chris had gone to Ikea (at her insistence) to furnish the apartment. Scott had tagged along and helped pick out the furniture. He had even helped design the closet of Kate’s dreams.  
April walked into the kitchen with a large box and set it on the counter. “That’s the last box.” She announced before turning to look out the windows. “Man, this place is awesome and I am super jealous.”  
“It’s not like you won’t be making use of one of those guest rooms as often as possible.” Kate joked.  
“Of course, I will! At least until the baby gets here. Then I’ll just skip the screaming-through-the-night thing.”  
“That’s cheating.”  
“That’s life. Do you want help unpacking your pots and pans?”  
“I haven’t even figured out where everything should go, yet.”  
“So, that’s a no?”  
“For now.”  
“Breather?” Scott asked, gesturing at the newly set up living room.  
“Sounds heavenly.” Kate followed Scott and April and took a seat on one of the recliners.  
“When does Chris get back?” April asked.  
“Tonight.”  
“Of course, he missed the moving in part.” Scott joked. “Leaves all the heavy lifting to the girls.”  
“Not very Captain America of him.” April laughed.  
“Oh, he’s not getting entirely out of it.” Kate assured them. “I’ll make sure to leave some boxes for him to unpack.”  
“Don’t lift anything heavy.” Scott warned. “You know you’re not supposed to.”  
“Hence the leaving stuff for your brother to do.” Kate sighed and rubbed her bump. “You know that sneaky bastard actually bought this place?”  
“Really?” April asked.  
“Yes. He didn’t tell me until afterwards. Now he wants to negotiate helping pay the bills.”  
“Kitty Kat, you should just let him.” Scott said. “My brother likes to take care of the ones he cares about the most. I think you kind of trump the whole family now.”  
Kate laughed. “I doubt that. I could never trump y’all’s mom.”  
“Ok, that’s true. But seriously, don’t stress yourself out over money. I know you like to be all Miss Independent, but just let him win that battle. You’ll both feel better for it in the long run.”  
“He’s not your sugar daddy.” April said. “He’s your partner. Let him be your partner.”  
Kate sighed. “Fine.” She pushed gently on her stomach and rolled her eyes when she felt the funny bubbles speed up. “This one is having a dance party.”  
“Can I join in?” Chris asked from the entryway. Kate turned to see her boyfriend standing there with a grin on his face, petting the dogs as they competed for his affection. “I left early because I hated leaving you to move in to our place without me. Oh! Don’t get up!” He rushed over to kneel down and kiss Kate before she could move any further.  
“Hi,” She breathed, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck.  
“Hi.”  
“And on that note,” April stood up. “I’m heading out.”  
“You don’t have to go.” Kate insisted.  
“I do. I’ve got a deadline tomorrow and I’ve still got some things to finish for it.” She blew Kate a kiss. “I’ll call you later, lovebug.”  
Chris squeezed in next to Kate and wrapped his arm around her shoulders as she put her legs over his. “The place is looking good.”  
“Thank Scott. If there’s anything you want to move, just move it.” Kate said. “I’m not stuck on the floorplan.”  
“I am!” Scott said, offended. “I worked hard telling those movers where everything needed to go.”  
Chris laughed. “I think it looks great. We’ll leave it the way it is.” He leaned in and stage whispered to Kate, “For now.”  
Scott threw a pillow at his brother. “That’s it. I’m leaving, too.”  
“Oh, stay!” Kate protested.  
“Nope. I’m giving you two time together. But don’t think you’re getting out of baby shower planning.”  
Kate rolled her eyes. “Can’t you just give me presents without the fanfare and the corny games?”  
“Hell no! My sisters, my mother, April, and I have plans. The Evans family has been waiting a long time for this.” He clapped Chris on the shoulder and kissed Kate’s cheek before walking out.  
Chris looked at Kate, running his fingers across her temple and through her hair. “Hi.”  
She pulled him to her and kissed him deeply. “Stop leaving me.”  
“I promise you’re coming with me for the next trip.”   
“Which is the Civil War premiere?”  
“Yep.”  
“Are you sure you want me to go?”  
“Are you kidding? Of course, I want you to go!”  
“It’s just…. We haven’t really done anything in the public eye and I know you’re private and….” She trailed off when she noticed his patient smile.  
“Babe, it’s not like the world doesn’t know who you are. But even if they didn’t, I want you there with me anyway. I want to show you LA and I want you to be a part of my life. All of my life.”  
Kate sighed. “There’s also another factor that makes me nervous.”  
“What’s that?”  
“You’ll be escorting a whale around.”  
“Shut up. You’re not a whale.” Chris put his hand on her swollen belly. “You’re absolutely gorgeous and the doctor says that you’re actually not gaining as much weight as you should be.”  
“I know. I’m losing it. My mom says she did the same thing with me and my sister.”   
He smiled at her. “So Jelly Bean is really moving around in there, huh?”  
“You can’t feel it?” Chris shook his head. “You will eventually. Right now there’s a party going on in my uterus. Pretty sure Jelly Bean got a DJ for it.”  
Chris laughed and leaned down to speak to her stomach. “Hey, kiddo, keep it down in there. Mommy needs some rest.”  
“I think he or she is excited by all the moving around I’ve been doing today.”  
“Then we probably should just be very still and not add to it….” Chris started to pull away with a mischievous glint in his eyes.  
“Shut up and take me to bed.” Kate said. “I’ve missed you.”  
“Yes, ma’am!” Chris leaned down and swept her up into his arms. She squealed and laughed before begging Chris to put her down. He relented at the stairs and followed her up, both of them stripping their clothes off as fast as possible.  
When they got to their bedroom, Chris was happy to find that Kate had already gotten the bed set up and he pulled her to him as he sat down on the mattress. She stood in front of him in just her underwear and he placed his hands on her bump. He leaned forward and kissed a trail from one side to the other. Kate reached down and lifted his face to her.  
“You are so beautiful.” Chris whispered against her lips.  
She pressed her lips against his and climbed on top of him. He held her against him as he worked to get her bra off. Her breasts, which had already been voluptuous, had filled out some and he brought one of her nipples into his mouth. She groaned, eyes fluttering, as she ground down on his growing erection. Her nerve endings were much more sensitive these days and pregnancy sex was mind blowing.  
Chris switched to her other breast as he palmed the globes of her ass. Her head fell back and her nails raked through his hair. His fingers dipped into the front of her panties and he groaned. “So wet.”  
“No more foreplay.” Kate growled. She stood up and got rid of her underwear before yanking his off. Chris fell back onto the bed and Kate climbed on top of him. He let out a guttural sound as she sunk down on him. She began to rock on top of him and he grabbed her hips to help her keep her balance. Curses and moans fell from their lips as she rode him fast and hard. He sat up suddenly and turned them, popping out of her. She got on all fours and he took her from behind. She let out a yell as he entered her again at the same time he flicked her clit harshly. There were no sheets on the bed for her to grab, so her fingers dug into the mattress as she grasped for something to hold onto.  
“Fuck.” Chris cried.  
“Chris, harder.” Kate begged.  
“I don’t want to hurt the baby.”  
“You won’t!”  
“But….”  
“Baby, please! I’m almost there.”  
Chris growled and started to pound into her, still holding back some. He shuddered as he felt his balls tighten just before he spilled into her. A moment later, her orgasm hit her and her walls clamped down on him. He fell forward, his chest against her back. They stayed still as their bodies shuddered and began to recover from powerful finishes. After a long moment, Chris pulled out of her and they both collapsed to the bed.  
When Chris finally found his voice again, he looked over at Kate. “Are you ok?”  
“Are you going to ask me that every time we have sex?”  
He chuckled. “Probably.”  
Kate reached out and placed her hand on his cheek, rubbing her thumb against his beard. “Yes, I’m fine.”  
“Good.” He kissed her palm. “So, are you ready for this?”  
Her eyes widened. “You’re ready to go again?”   
Chris let out his loud, energetic laugh. “Fuck no! I meant are you ready to live with me?”  
Kate laughed. “Yeah. I think so. This experience can’t be worse than the last one, right?”  
“Was the last one Asshole McGhee?”  
“Yes.”  
“Oh yeah.” Chris nodded. “This will be a piece of cake compared to that.”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Kate grumbled to herself as she put the dishes in the dishwasher. For the third night in a row, Chris had left the dinner dishes in the sink. They had been moved in and living together for three weeks now. Learning the other’s ways was a chore.   
Kate hated leaving messes in the kitchen. Chris didn’t mind leaving the mess until the next day.   
Kate did her laundry the way her mother had taught her by separating everything out. Chris just threw everything in the washer at once.   
Kate used coasters to keep from having to clean rings off of surfaces. Chris had apparently never heard of coasters.   
Kate kept things well stocked. Chris would drink out of the carton or pitcher and put it back with only a tiny amount left in the bottom.  
“He’s been a bachelor for so long, I think he’s forgotten his manners.” Kate muttered.  
She wasn’t a complete domestic angel, though.   
Loose hair had always made her sick to her stomach, so she never cleaned out her brushes or the shower drain. Chris had had to clean the drain out once already and it was starting to pile up again. She also took up a whole side of the shower with her bath products. It amazed him how many shampoos, conditioners, body washes, face washes, and shaving creams one woman could have. And that didn’t even cover the hair products and hair tools she used! Those took up a whole cabinet of the vanity. Her makeup took up all four drawers on her side of the bathroom vanity. She also had feminine products taking up one drawer on his side of the vanity. Every time he stepped foot in their bathroom, he wondered where the hell she had kept all of it in her garage apartment.  
“Hey, babe!” Chris called from the living room. “Come watch a movie with me.”  
“Not right now.”  
“Please?”  
“I’m busy right now.” She lowered her voice. “Doing the dishes again.”  
Her boyfriend walked into the kitchen and leaned on the counter. “Finish the dishes tomorrow. I promise it’ll be worth your while tonight.” He wiggled his eyebrows at her and she rolled her eyes.  
“You are literally a horny frat boy.”  
He scrunched his face up in confusion. “Is that a good thing or a bad thing?”  
“I’m still debating. Why don’t you help me finish the dishes? Then I can come watch a movie.”  
“Ok.” Chris sighed and pretended to roll his sleeves up. He completely missed that she was slightly annoyed with him. Once they were finished, she leaned against the counter for a moment and rubbed her belly. Chris watched her with a concerned look. “You ok?”  
“Yeah. Just…. Ate too much and Jelly Bean is protesting the smaller space.” She gave him a small smile. “I’m going to go put on some PJs and then we can watch a movie.”  
“Ok.” He leaned down and kissed her gently. “I’ll get the movie ready. Will you grab me a pair of sweats while you’re up there?”  
“Sure.” She mounted the stairs and took them slowly. After changing into a pair of yoga pants and a big sweater, she threw her hair up into a high ponytail and grabbed a pair of Chris’ sweatpants. He was taking his clothes off as she came back downstairs and tossing them in a pile next to the couch. “Are we watching a movie or making a porno?”  
Chris laughed loudly and shook his head. “Well, I was planning to watch a movie, but if you’re interested….”  
“I most distinctly am not. That’s the last thing we need is a sex tape of us floating around out there.” She tossed him his pants. “Did you make popcorn?”  
“We just ate.”  
Kate blinked at him for a moment and then gestured at her belly. “I have no control over what this one craves. Start the movie and I’ll make some popcorn.”  
“I can make it.”  
She waved him away. “I’ve got it. Just start the movie.” Kate walked into the kitchen and opened one of the cabinets to pull out some popcorn. She tossed it into the microwave and watched it turn around and around. By the time she was finished, the movie had already started. She narrowed her eyes at it. “What is this?”  
“That movie you said you wanted to watch.” Chris said, taking a handful of popcorn as she sat down.  
“This doesn’t look like a movie I want to watch.”  
“Yeah. It’s 28 Days Later.”  
“Huh?”  
“You said you liked it.”  
“I never said I liked 28 Days Later. In fact, I’m pretty sure I’ve told you I don’t do scary movies.”  
“I know. I thought it was weird that you wanted to watch this, but….”  
“I don’t want to watch this!”  
“You said you did!”  
“I said 28 Days, Chris! I wanted to watch 28 Days! The Sandra Bullock movie!” She looked at the TV where zombies were starting to attack. “Fuck! Turn it off!”  
“It’s just a movie, babe.” She surged to her feet and walked out. “Kat!” Kate slammed the popcorn bowl down on the kitchen counter and marched up the stairs. Chris turned the movie off and followed her. “Hey, stop!”  
“No.”  
“What’s going on with you?”  
“I don’t want to watch a horror movie. Especially a zombie one!”  
“Ok. We won’t watch it.”  
“Nope, we won’t because I’m going to bed.”   
“Ok. What’s going on?”  
“What do you mean?”   
“You’ve been edgy with me all night.”  
“Yes I have. Glad you finally noticed!”  
“If you have something to say, then say it.”  
“I don’t like the way you do things.”  
“What?”  
“You’re such a frat boy and I’m done debating about it. I don’t like this Chris!”  
“Babe….”  
“Don’t babe me. You never do the dishes.”  
“I helped you do them tonight.”  
“Because I asked you to. I have to ask you to help with them! You always just leave them in the sink and don’t rinse them or soak them or anything. That shit just gets caked on there and makes it harder to clean! It takes five minutes to rinse them and put them in the dishwasher! And you’re messy! I feel like I’m always cleaning up after you. I’ll have to go clean up your clothes in the living room!”  
“I….”  
“And what the fuck is up with you putting empty shit back in the fridge? Why can’t you just throw it away and add it to the grocery list? Why is that so hard for you? It’s common fucking courtesy.”  
“Well, you’re no fucking picnic either!”  
“Excuse me?”  
“You’re so god damn OCD about every little thing! Lighten up!”  
“I’m sorry if I like things clean and orderly, Chris! I didn’t know that would be such an issue! And don’t tell me to fucking lighten up! You lighten up!”  
“And how hard is it to clean the shower drain? It’s just some wet hair!”   
“It makes me physically ill to even think about loose hair! And with the amount of throwing up I’ve been doing carrying your kid, sorry if I don’t want to add any more to it!”  
“I didn’t ask you to carry my kid!” Kate’s eyes widened in shock and she slammed the bathroom door in his face, locking it tight. “Fuck!” Chris knew as soon as the words had left his mouth that he’d pushed it way too far. He hadn’t meant to get so angry and he really hadn’t meant what he’d just said. “Kat, I’m sorry!”  
“Go away!”  
“Please open the door.”  
“No!”  
“Please, Kat. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it.” He sat down on the floor and leaned his back against the door, banging his head against it once in frustration as the tears fell down his cheeks.  
Kate sat down on the edge of the bathtub and cried into her hands. She hadn’t meant to snap at Chris. She had been frustrated with him and then before she knew what was happening, she had exploded. She had meant to be rational when she was ready to talk about her issues with him, but hormones had gotten the best of her. Things had escalated too quickly.  
“Baby, please open the door.” Chris said. His voice sounded horse and it cracked with emotion. “Please?”  
“Why?”  
“I didn’t mean it, Kat. I really didn’t. It was a stupid fucking thing to say and I didn’t mean it.”  
Kate sighed and opened the door. Chris hadn’t been expecting it and fell backwards. He winced as his head bounced off the tile. “Oh!”  
“Ow.” He looked up at her and chuckled. “Guess I deserved that.”  
“A little bit.” She reached out to help him to his feet. “I shouldn’t have snapped at you like that.”  
“I shouldn’t have let it escalate like it did.” He pulled her to him. “I just love you so much and….”  
“What?”  
“What?”  
“You….”  
“Oh.” Chris pulled away slightly to look down at her. “I said it.”  
“Yeah.”  
He grinned. “Felt kinda good.”  
“Yeah?”  
“Yeah.”  
“You mean it?”  
“From the moment I met you, it’s been on the tip of my tongue. It felt really good to finally say it out loud.”  
“You’re not just saying it to get out of trouble?”  
“Hell no. I mean every syllable.”  
“Good. Cause, you know, well…. I do, too.”  
“Yeah?”  
“Yeah.”  
“Are you going to actually say it?”  
“Maybe. Maybe I need some incentive.”  
“Like….” He leaned down and kissed the spot on her neck just below her ear. “This?”  
“Mmm….”  
“Or this….” Chris moved his lips further down her neck, lightly biting her collarbone.   
“Closer.”  
“How about this?” He reached up and gently held the sides of her face, taking a moment to look into her blue-green eyes. “I love you, Kat.”  
“I love you, too, Chris.” She reached out and pulled him closer. He brought his lips to hers and her insides melted.  
After a long, breathless moment, Chris placed his forehead against hers. “I’m so sorry, Kat. We need to start talking more openly instead of tiptoeing around each other.”  
“I know.”  
“Can we promise not to let our issues build and build till we explode again?”  
“Well, I can try. Honestly, my hormones got me there and I overreacted. Once everything passed, I realized how stupid we sounded.”  
Chris chuckled. “I’ll give you a pass for hormones.”  
“Fair warning: I’m gonna use the hell out of it.”  
He leaned down and kissed her again, rubbing his hand against her belly. “I’m happy you’re the one that’s carrying my kid. I can’t wait to meet our little Jelly Bean.”  
Kate smiled against his lips. “Take me to bed, soldier. There’s makeup sex to be had.”  
“Yes, ma’am.” Chris lifted her into his arms and carried her through the closet and back into the bedroom.


	14. Chapter 14

Kate wandered around the clean, white living room and admired the view from the backyard while Lisa followed her. Chris came in behind them, setting their luggage down. They were in Los Angeles for the Civil War press and premiere. There were a lot of firsts happening on this trip for her. First private jet ride, first time on the West Coast, first time going to a movie premiere, first time going public with her celebrity boyfriend…. She was working on not being overwhelmed.   
“Welcome to my home away from home.” Chris said, walking up being Kate and wrapping his arms around her. His hands went to her belly and he rubbed them in small circles.  
“The view is pretty.” Kate said, leaning on him and laying her head back on his shoulder. She was exhausted from jet lag and had developed a headache.  
“You should go lay down, honey.” Lisa said, checking Kate’s forehead.  
“Do I have time?”  
“We’ve got plenty of time.” Chris said. “Ma’s right. You should go lay down.”   
“You need to take care of yourself, Kat.” Lisa said. “Chris, go lay down with her. It’ll make her feel more comfortable in an unfamiliar bed. I can entertain myself.”  
He kissed Kate’s temple after she nodded her agreement. “Come on, baby. Let’s go lay down.”  
“I’ve got such a headache.” Kate said, rubbing her temples.  
“I’ll get your Tylenol.” Lisa said.  
“I have to pee again.” She grumbled as Chris led her to his master bedroom.  
He pointed at the door to the master bathroom. “It’s right in there. I’ll go grab our bags.”  
“Ok.” When she came back out, Chris was sitting on the bed holding a glass of water and two Tylenol pills. A pair of fluffy shorts and a large T-shirt sat next to him. He had changed from his jeans and sweater to a pair of gray sweatpants and no shirt. Their suitcases were sitting in and around the chair in the corner of the room. “Feel better?”  
“Only my bladder does. My head still hurts and my feet are swollen and I want to take a nap.”  
“Here, take these.” He handed her the pills and water. Once she took them, he helped her to get into the shorts and shirt before easing her onto the bed. He sat down and took her feet in his lap.   
She sighed with pleasure as he began to rub her feet. “Tell me about what’s on the agenda this week.”  
“Tomorrow is the MTV Movie Awards. Sunday I’ve got press to do all day. Monday I film Ellen with Lizzie and later is Jimmy Kimmel Live. Then Tuesday is the premiere.”  
“Then on to China?”  
“Are you sure you’re up for it? You could always fly back with Ma.”  
“I’ll be fine. I’m excited for London. It’s only a couple of days, but I’ve always wanted to go.”  
“I’m just worried about all that traveling and how it’ll affect you.”  
“I’ll be tired, but it’s nothing I’m not used to right now. I can’t sleep on my stomach, so I can’t get comfortable, so I don’t get much sleep. Maybe I’ll be able to sleep on one of the planes.”  
“You didn’t get any sleep on the plane here.”  
“I’ll figure it out.” Kate sighed and rubbed her stomach. “Being pregnant is hard.”  
Chris chuckled. “I can only imagine.”  
She reached out for him. “Come lay down. Be my big spoon.”  
“Happily.” Chris crawled up her body, kissing his way up her leg and then her arm. He dropped behind her and spooned against her, wrapping his arm around her and rubbing small circles on her belly. A strong kick to his hand made him jerk back. “Holy shit!” He laughed and put his hand back.  
“Oh good, you can feel that now, too.” Kate heard him sniff behind her and she turned her head to see Chris wiping at tears running down his cheeks. “Awe, Chris….”  
“Sorry. I just…. That’s my kid. That’s our kid. We made that.”  
“We sure did.” She turned over onto her back and covered his hand with hers as he rested it on her belly.  
He laughed again as the baby kicked his hand. “Kat, I am so fucking happy. I can’t remember ever being happier.”  
Kate reached up and wiped away his tears with her free hand. “Is it just now hitting you that you’re going to be a daddy?”  
“A little bit.” He ducked his head to kiss her shoulder and then rested his head there, staring at their hands on her stomach. “I’ve known it was coming. I’ve watched you grow with our little Jelly Bean in there, but feeling our baby kick…. It’s means it’s real.”  
“Oh, what? I was just getting fatter till now?” Her tone implied that she was joking, but Chris still looked panicked.  
“I didn’t say that!”  
She giggled. “Baby, calm down. I was kidding.”  
“I know, but I don’t want you to ever think that you’re fat or ugly. You are so gorgeous and you just get more beautiful with every day that passes and I just love you so fucking much.”  
“You don’t have to try so hard to get laid.” Kate poked Chris’ nose with a grin. “I’m all yours, baby.”  
Chris laughed and kissed her. “We’re supposed to be sleeping.”  
“This leads to sleep eventually….” A jaw-splitting yawn cut her off.  
“You sleep. If you feel up to it later, then we’ll work something out.”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
When Kate woke up a couple of hours later, she felt the familiar roiling of her stomach. She quickly got out of bed and rushed into the bathroom. Lisa happened to be walking by Chris’ bedroom door when she heard the retching. She rushed into the bathroom and knelt down by Kate, holding her hair with one hand and rubbing her back with the other. Chris was in the kitchen on the phone with Megan.  
“I thought the second trimester was supposed to be a cakewalk.” Kate said with a shaky voice.  
“That’s a myth.” Lisa said, sitting with Kate. “There is nothing about being pregnant that is a cakewalk.”  
“Maybe I need to start reading those books I bought.”  
“You haven’t started?”  
“I’ve been tracking my pregnancy on an app on my phone. It gives me all the details of what I can expect that week and the size of the baby.”  
“That’s really neat.”  
“This week, Jelly Bean is the size of a head of cauliflower.” Lisa laughed. “Chris has the app, too.”  
“There’s a party in my bathroom.” Chris said, drawing the women’s attention to him standing in the doorway. “Everything ok?”  
“Morning sickness that can’t tell time.” Kate said. “Now that it’s over, I feel better.”  
“It was probably all the excitement of travelling.” Lisa said, getting to her feet with her son’s help.  
“Thanks for being here with her, ma.” Chris said, taking his mother’s vacated seat on the bathroom floor.  
“It’s my pleasure. I’ll go see what I can cook up for dinner later.”  
“Oh, don’t worry about it. I thought we could take Kate out for a little site-seeing and dinner somewhere if she feels up to it.” He looked over at Kate. “Since you’ve never been here, I thought it could be fun.”  
“Only if you feel up to it, sweetie. You don’t want to tire yourself out any more than you already have.”  
“I actually feel pretty rested right now.” Kate said. “I wouldn’t mind some site-seeing with you guys. Will it be ok for you, Chris? I know LA is kind of paparazzi central.”  
“Yeah. I’ll just pop on some sunglasses and a hat. It should be a good enough disguise.”  
“Kate, you’ll need to put some on, too.” Lisa said. “The internet has your picture everywhere and people are going to notice you. Especially in Los Angeles. The last thing you two need is to get mobbed.”  
“I’ve got a few hats you can choose from, babe.”  
“Ok. Get your ass up and help me up.” Chris chuckled and hopped to his feet. He held his hands out and helped Kate to stand up. When he leaned in to kiss her, she ducked her head away. “You really don’t want to do that.”  
He laughed and kissed her forehead. “I’ll go unpack your toothbrush.”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Chris sat on the edge of the bed and watched Kate sleep. She had been fast asleep when he’d woken up that morning and he hadn’t wanted to disturb her. They had gotten home kind of late the night before. He had planned on taking her to Grauman’s Theatre, a few places on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Rodeo Drive, and maybe the Griffith Observatory. Instead, she had convinced him to take her to Disneyland. They had spent all afternoon and well into the night there, closing the place down. She couldn’t do any of the thrill rides, but she had had plenty of fun with everything else she could do. They had enjoyed a late romantic dinner at Carthay Circle Restaurant. They had been lucky to get a table, but there had been a last-minute cancellation. Lisa had spent the afternoon with them, but had left early in the evening to give the couple time together.  
“Hey sleepy head.” Chris leaned over and kissed her cheek. “It’s almost noon.”  
“Mmmm.” Kate tried to roll onto her stomach, but her bump stopped her and she groaned.  
He chuckled. “I’m really happy that you got some sleep, but now we’ve gotta start getting ready to go. Jenn is here to pamper you.”  
She lifted her head and curled around to lay it on Chris’ lap. “I’m cozy.”  
Chris smoothed out her unruly hair. “I know. If you don’t want to go to the show with me, you don’t have to. Ma isn’t going. I’m sure you guys can hang out here or go out and sightsee around LA.”  
“I want to go, but I want to be asleep, too.”  
“I promise we won’t be there long. I just have to introduce a clip from the movie and then mingle a little bit.”  
Kate nodded and moved to sit up. She ended up facing Chris and gave him a smile before leaning forward and nuzzling her head on his shoulder. He laughed and wrapped his arms around her. “Am I really going to the MTV Movie Awards tonight?”  
“Seems like.”  
“I used to watch them all the time when I was younger.”  
“They were a lot more exciting back then, right?”  
“They really were. I think the last decent one I remember seeing was the one that Sarah Michelle Gellar and Jack Black hosted. Or maybe it was when Justin Timberlake hosted with that guy from American Pie.”  
“You know Justin lives down the road from me?”  
“Really? I might go for a walk tomorrow. Which way should I head?”  
Chris laughed and kissed the top of her head. “Good thing he’s married. You would win him over and I might lose you to him.”  
“Oh, you definitely would. I’m a hardcore NSYNC fan.”  
“Don’t tell Shanna that. She’s hardcore Backstreet Boys.”  
Kate giggled. “Ok, I guess I’ll get up now. I’m going to brush my teeth before I go out there, though.”  
“Ok. I’ll wait here.” Chris laid down and stretched out in her vacated spot.  
“Well, that’s not fair. Why do you get to lay down?”  
“Because I’m not getting my hair and makeup done.”  
“You should probably rethink that. The camera is definitely going to pick up how hideous your face actually is, then.”  
Chris laughed loudly, covering his chest with his hand as the rest of his limbs levitated off the mattress. He turned on his side and propped his head up on his hand. “Maybe I should let you go out and introduce the clip? You’re already gorgeous. That hair and makeup is only going to make it stand out more.”  
“Pretty sure I would disappoint all your fans.”  
“Just the female ones. The male fans might try to steal you away.”  
“Well, I’m also pretty sure Jelly Bean is a big deterrent to other guys.” She turned and walked into the bathroom while Chris just grinned at her.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
The place was loud and full of beautifully dressed celebrities. Jenn had dressed Kate in a fashionable blue dress that was off the shoulders and hugged her body from her shoulders to her knees. It made her bump stand out. She was wearing a pair of black, peep-toe pumps that had four-inch heels. Jenn had teased her hair and then put it into a low side ponytail. Her makeup was done very naturally and dewy as a request from Chris to just show off Kate’s natural beauty.  
Kate gripped Chris’ hand as they walked through the backstage area behind Megan, his publicist. The place was actually outdoors this year. Everywhere they went, people stared inquisitively at her. Chris waved at and talked to some of the celebrities, always introducing Kate. Some of them were friendly to her, others just nodded and ignored her. She was starting to feel like an outsider and it was making her cling to Chris as her insecurities started to creep through her.  
“Captain Little Ass!” An unmistakable, loud voice called from a few feet away. They turned to see Anthony Mackie making his way over. “Bring it in here, bro!” The two men hugged tightly. “Congratulations, man! Welcome to the daddy club!”  
“Thank you.” Chris laughed. “Mackie, this is my girlfriend, Kate. Kate, this is Anthony Mackie.”  
“I’m a hugger.” Mackie warned, bringing Kate into a tight hug. “Congratulations to you, too!”  
“Thank you. It’s lovely to meet you.” Kate smiled as Chris wrapped his arm around her waist.  
“This dude talks non-stop about you. Seriously, the Avengers group chat has been non-stop Kate talk.”  
“Oh, god. That’s embarrassing.”  
“Don’t be embarrassed. We’re all really excited for you guys. And he has nothing but great things to say about you.”  
Kate looked up at Chris lovingly. “That’s so sweet.”  
“So, when are you due?”  
“July 22nd.” Chris and Kate said in unison.  
Mackie laughed. “Not too much longer. You’re almost in your third trimester, then.”  
“Yes.”  
“Are you excited?”  
“Is that the same thing as nervous? If so, then yes.”  
“You’ve got nothing to worry about. If you need any advice, my wife, Sheletta, would be more than happy to help you out. She pretty much adopted Chris the moment she met him, so you’re family now, too.”  
“Oh, thank you!”  
“What am I saying? You’re getting hit with advice left and right, I bet.”  
“A little bit, but I’m just trying to listen to my body and my doctor.”  
“That’s the best thing. Every pregnancy is different. You do you, girl.”  
“Chris, Josh Horowitz wants to do an interview with you and Mackie.” Megan said.  
“Oh, uh….” Chris looked at Kate, not wanting to leave her.  
“I’ll guard her.” A deep, Australian voice said from their left.  
“Hemmy!” Chris and Mackie yelled. The three men embraced and Chris turned back to Kate. “Kat, this is Chris Hemsworth. Hemmy, this is my girlfriend, Kate.”  
“It’s nice to meet you.” Kate said, shaking Hemsworth’s hand. “I’m not gonna call you Hemmy.”  
Hemsworth laughed. “It’s ok. I’ve tried to get them to stop, but they’re assholes. Look at you! You’re bloody gorgeous. Has Evans figured out that you’re out of his league, yet?”  
“Oh gosh!” Kate blushed profusely. “I am way out of my element right now.”  
“For the record, I figured it out a long time ago.” Chris said. “But she keeps choosing me, so I’m not complaining.” He kissed her quickly. “You’re in good hands with Hemmy. I’ll be quick.” She watched him walk off with Megan and Mackie.   
“How are you feeling?” Hemsworth asked.  
“I’m ok. I actually got to sleep last night.” Kate said, turning to look up at the tall Australian.  
“Evans gushes about you and the baby non-stop.”  
She laughed. “So I’ve heard.”  
“We’re all really excited about it. He’s going to be such a great dad. We’re all really excited to get to know you, too.”  
“That’s so sweet. You and your wife just had twins, right?”  
“We did! They’re almost two years old now.”  
“Congratulations. That must be terrifying.”  
Hemsworth laughed. “It was a bit of a shock at first, but we absolutely love it.”  
“I’m sure it’s fun being outnumbered.”  
“You’ll find out eventually, I’m sure.”  
“Oh, we, uh…. We haven’t talked about that.”  
“Oh god, I’m sorry. Please, ignore me. I talk too much.”  
“No. It’s ok. Really! I mean, I’ve known that Chris wants kids plural. I am a fan of his and I’ve seen his interviews. I think you guys did one for Age of Ultron talking about him wanting kids after babysitting yours.”  
“Good memory.”  
“It’s just that…. Well, this one was kind of a shock, so I haven’t even thought about anything past this one.”  
“I’m sorry. Evans said that it wasn’t planned. I just stuck my foot in my mouth. I hope you’re not offended.”  
“I’m not. Really, I’m not.”  
“Just the way he talks about you and the future….” Hemsworth shrugged sheepishly. “Topic change?”  
“Sure!”  
“Are you excited about going to the premiere later this week?”  
“I’m nervous.”  
“Don’t be. You’ll have a blast. I won’t lie and say the first time isn’t intimidating, but once you get over the initial insanity of it all, it’s actually quite fun.”  
“Will you be there?”  
“No. Thor didn’t get invited to the war. Besides, I’ve got press to do for this movie.”  
“Hey, how do you handle people wanting to know every detail about you?”  
“Deflection. You give them just enough to think they’re actually getting something juicy, but in reality it’s just something they already know just rephrased.”  
“I have no idea how to do that.”  
Hemsworth laughed. “Honestly, I have no idea either. My wife gets annoyed with me sometimes because I think I always manage to give too much away.”  
“I’m really glad I’m not a celebrity. I don’t know how you guys can do interview after interview with the same questions.”  
“Oh, that’s easy. The more bored I get as the interviews go along, the more insane my answers get. I kind of feel sorry for the reporters at the end of the day because they’re just getting complete bullshit out of me.”  
Kate laughed. “Chris told me he gets kind of crazy at the end of junkets, too.”  
“Marvel stopped letting us interview together because we were just the worst.”  
“It’s true.” Megan said, joining the conversation. “I got so many calls about the shit that came out of them, I could’ve wrung their necks for it.”  
“I’d say I’m sorry, but it was too much fun.”  
“Thanks, Hemsworth.” Megan laughed. “Chris is just finishing up and he’s got to go do his intro. If you want to watch, there’s a green room we can go to.”  
“I was heading there, too.” Hemsworth said. “I’ve got to meet up with Charlize and Jessica.”  
“Can I go to the bathroom first?” Kate asked.  
“Again? You just went when we got here.” Megan said.  
“She’s pregnant, Megan.” Hemsworth chastised. “She can’t help it.”  
“Right. Sorry. Come on. There’s a bathroom in the green room.”  
“Thanks.” Kate said.  
Hemsworth fell into step next to Kate and leaned over to whisper in her ear, “Told you I would protect you.”  
“Thor to the rescue.”  
“Always, fair maiden.”  
Megan led them into the building that housed a large, plush area that was also filled with celebrities. She pointed out the restrooms and promised to be waiting right outside the doors. Hemsworth told Kate he wouldn’t leave the room until he’d gotten to see her again before heading off to join his castmates.  
“Have you seen her yet?” A voice asked as two women walked into the bathroom. Kate had just gotten settled on the toilet.  
“Yes.” The other woman said. “Clearly she got pregnant on purpose to keep him around.”  
“You think?”  
“I mean, why else would he choose to stay with someone so fat and pathetic? She looks like she’s going to burst out of that dress at any moment like a can of biscuits. It’s gross.”  
“I don’t know. She’s kind of cute.”  
“Please! She’s a complete stalker. There’s no way they met by chance.”  
“What do you mean?”  
“Do you actually believe she was just there on vacation by herself? Who even does that? That’s just sad. She totally went to Boston to stalk her celebrity crush and managed to fool him into sleeping with her. Now she’s got him trapped playing house.” Kate felt like she’d been hit with a ton of bricks. They were talking about her. She peeked through the slit in the stall door to see if she could tell who the women were.   
“You sure you’re not just mad that you didn’t think of it first?”  
“I would never allow myself to get pregnant to keep a man. I’m not desperate like that. That’s just over-the-top, trailer-park trash skanky.”  
“Well, he’s with her now. What can you do about it?”  
“I was actually hoping to run into him tonight. See if I can’t get him to scratch an itch one more time, if you know what I mean.”  
“You two were definitely hot together.”  
“You have no idea. I bet he’s so bored with the porker that he needs some excitement in his life. You know, I almost regret breaking it off with him.”  
“Why did you?”  
“I got bored. Besides, he was starting to talk about marriage and I just wasn’t feeling that. I will say that the thing I regret most about the breakup is giving up the sex. He is great in bed.” The woman laughed harshly. “How the hell he can find where to stick it in all that fat is beyond me. Seriously, how did that cow get him to sleep with her? And who does she think she is coming here with him?”  
“You’re just mad he never brought you anywhere.” Megan’s voice said suddenly.   
“Megan!”  
“Finally dumping your fame hungry ass was the greatest thing Chris ever did, Minka.”  
“Fuck you too, twerp.” Minka and her friend stormed out of the bathroom.  
Kate felt her face getting hotter as tears fell down her cheeks. The woman talking shit about her was Chris’ ex-girlfriend, Minka Kelly.   
“Kat?” Megan called softly.  
Kate didn’t answer as she felt her throat constrict with overwhelming emotions. The things Minka had said were vile and hurtful. Kate tried her hardest to not let others’ opinions of her bother her too much, but to hear someone discuss her private life and be so vicious towards someone they didn’t even know was awful. And there was a little voice in the back of her head that wondered if it was all true. Had she trapped Chris because she wouldn’t have an abortion?  
“Kat, I know you’re in here.” Megan said. Kate sighed and got up off the toilet. She adjusted her dress and walked out. “Oh, Kat, I’m so sorry. Minka is such a bitch.”  
“Clearly.” Kate spat.  
Megan handed her a tissue. “Please don’t listen to her. Chris adores you.”  
“I don’t stack up to her, Megan. I don’t stack up to any of the people in his life here. We’ve been living in this little bubble and I forgot for a while, but being here…. Seeing these people…. Seeing her…. What the hell am I doing here?”  
“You’ve got it all wrong, Kat. They don’t stack up to you. Trust me. I’ve been with Chris a long damn time and I’ve seen them all. Minka may be pretty on the outside, but she’s an ugly person on the inside. She’s just jealous.” Megan hugged Kate tightly. “Seriously, she was the absolute worst thing on the planet for Chris. She’s a fame whore. She jumps to an ‘it’ guy and rides his coattails until the next ‘it’ guy comes along. Chris actually thought they had something, but she was just leading him on. He finally realized it the second time they dated and he dumped her.”  
“What about all the others?”  
“There’s really not that many, Kat. And trust me, none of them have what you have.”  
“And what is that?”  
“Chris’ heart. Seriously, that man is head over heels for you in a way he’s never been before.”  
“You didn’t hear what she said, Megan.”  
“Not all of it, but I heard enough. I’m so sorry, Kate. This is all my fault. I got distracted and completely missed her coming in here. I should’ve headed her off.” Kate glanced at herself in the mirror and groaned. “Don’t worry about it. Chris should be done and we can leave now. He doesn’t have to stay if you don’t want to.”  
“I don’t want to. I just want to go home.”  
“Ok. We can definitely do that.”   
Megan helped Kate clean her face up as best she could. It was clear that Kate had been crying, but at least her mascara wasn’t running down her cheeks anymore. When she finally felt presentable, she followed Megan out of the bathroom. Glancing around, she spotted Chris talking to Minka across the room. Her hand was on his bicep and she was laughing at something he said. Kate’s stomach dropped and fresh tears welled in her eyes.   
“Fuck me.” Megan snapped emphatically. Lucky for her, Hemsworth was nearby. “Hey, Chris, can you take Kate to where they’re keeping the cars? She’s not feeling great. I need to go get Chris.”  
“Of course!” Hemsworth walked over and wrapped an arm around Kate’s shoulders. “Come on, sweetheart. Let’s get you out of here.”  
“Thank you.” Kate said, her voice wobbling as she tried to fight back the tears.  
“Pregnancy sickness is no joke. I’m sorry it’s ruined your night.” He rubbed her arm affectionately. “Evans will get you home and you’ll feel better in no time.”  
“Thanks.”  
Hemsworth got them to the loading area and let the valet there know that Kate was with Chris Evans. The valet rushed off to get the driver out there quickly. Kate was having a hard time keeping the tears at bay and now her morning sickness was actually trying to rear its ugly head. Thankfully the car got there quickly and Hemsworth helped her in, telling her he hoped she felt better soon.   
Inside the green room, Megan marched over to Chris and Minka. “Seriously?” She snapped at the tall brunette. “You seriously have the nerve to walk over here and talk to him after all that?”  
“Whoa, Megan! What’s going on?” Chris asked.  
“Kate was in the bathroom while your ex-bitch here talked shit about her.”  
“What?”  
“I didn’t know she was in there.” Minka said, her tone implying that she didn’t care Kate had heard everything.  
“Who the fuck cares if you didn’t know?” Megan snapped. “You don’t know her and you have no claim on Chris, so you shouldn’t even be opening your mouth. The things you said about her were fucked up.”  
“Seriously?” Chris growled.  
“It’s not my fault if she can’t handle people talking about her.” Minka defended. “I was just repeating what I’ve heard. Maybe she shouldn’t have set her sights on someone so out of her league if she can’t take people talking about her.”  
“Watch your fucking mouth.”  
“After all I meant to you, you’re going to speak to me like that over her?”   
“You mean absolutely nothing to me. Kate means everything to me! Try spreading that shit around instead of the bullshit you’re spewing.”  
“Chris….”  
“We’re done here. Stay away from me and my family. Megan, let’s go.” Chris turned and marched off with Megan rushing to keep up. They passed Hemsworth on the way and he let them know Kate was already in the car. Chris picked up his pace and practically ran to the car. Kate was sitting in the back trying not to hyperventilate. “Oh, babe, I am so fucking sorry.” Chris wrapped Kate in his arms and she began to sob. “Please don’t let her get to you. Please, baby. She’s a piece of shit.” Kate couldn’t say anything. She was too overcome with hurt and anger and it wasn’t helping her keep her morning sickness at bay. Megan ordered the driver to pull over and Kate barely made it out of the car before she was sick on the side of the interstate.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Chris laid beside Kate and watched her sleep in the darkness. He didn’t know exactly what Minka had said. Kate hadn’t been coherent as they drove home and she had decided to just go to bed when they got to their house. Lisa had tried to get her to talk while she’d helped her clean up and get into her shirt and shorts, but Kate just hadn’t felt like talking.  
He reached over and placed his hand on her stomach, hoping to feel the baby move. “Did I trap you, Chris?” Her voice startled him. He thought she’d been deep asleep.   
Then the meaning of her words hit him. “What?”  
She pushed his hand away from her. “I did, didn’t I? Because I wouldn’t have an abortion, you felt obligated to stay with me.”  
“I think you forgot about the two months before we found out….”  
“I’m sorry, Chris. I’m sorry for invading your life. It’s not what I meant to happen.”  
“Stop it.”  
“But it’s true! You were living your life and then I just showed up and….”  
“Made everything brighter. You made my world better, Kat.”  
“How did I do that? I said from the beginning that I’m nothing special.”  
“And I said from the beginning that you are extraordinary. You haven’t done anything to prove me wrong.”  
“The things she said…. Are people really saying that about me?”  
“Who gives a shit? Nothing anyone says is going to change how I feel about you.”  
“I’m just a nobody fangirl who met the celebrity she adored and fooled him into loving her.”  
“Is that how you really feel? Or is that a conditioned response?”  
“Conditioned response?”  
Chris sat up and turned the bedside lamp on. “Kat, your father spent years making sure that you felt like you were never going to be good enough. You spent years in therapy trying to recondition yourself to think otherwise, but you’re going back to that old way of thinking right now. Do you remember what you said to me in Boston when I was worried about people being mean to you? You were so confident in yourself then. You said that you had heard it all about yourself and it wasn’t going to bother you. Where did that Kat go?”  
“She was wrong. It does bother me.”  
“Why?”  
“Because my father was right. I’m not good enough, Chris! I’m not good enough to be your partner. I’m not good enough to….”  
“Stop it!”  
“Look at how I reacted tonight! That’s not how someone in a relationship with Chris fucking Evans should react to anyone talking shit about her.”  
“How should she react?”  
“She should have walked out of that stall and told Minka to go fuck herself.”  
“And why didn’t she?”  
“Because I’m not her! I just sat there and listened to it and I didn’t stand up for myself because I feel like maybe she was right. Maybe I did trap you because I wouldn’t have an abortion.”  
“Take your pass.”  
“What?”  
“Take your pass.”  
“What are you talking about?”  
“I’m giving you a hormone pass. Take it.”  
“You think this is just hormones?”  
“I know this is just hormones. Baby, you had a rough night and you’re allowed to feel shitty, but I need you to take the hormone pass and come back to me, ok?”  
“Chris….”  
“Take the hormone pass, damn it!”  
She blinked at him for a moment. “Ok! I take the hormone pass!”  
“Thank you.”  
“You’re ridiculous.”  
“I love you, too.” Chris stopped for a moment and stared at her. He seemed to come to some conclusion and smiled to himself. “Kathleen Amelia Allen, I love you. It is insane how much I love you.”  
“Sometimes I really believe that insane part.”  
He reached over and pulled out a little wooden box from the nightstand on his side of the bed. He opened it to reveal a beautiful and unique engagement ring sitting in dark blue velvet. The white gold ring was an art deco style with a European cut diamond set in a square-shaped halo of French cut sapphire accents. A pear-shaped natural sapphire sat on either side of the square. “Kat, I bought this in Savannah after I left Richmond. I bought this only three weeks after we met. I was wandering through town waiting for you to get off work so I could call you and I saw this in the window of an old antique shop. It just screamed your name. I walked in and bought it because I knew one day, I wanted to give it to you. I bought it well before I knew you were pregnant. I’ve carried it with me everywhere I go since that day just waiting for the perfect moment.”   
“You think me having a mental breakdown because your ex said some nasty things about me and made me realize how big and different your world actually is, is a perfect moment?”  
“Uh…. Actually….” His resolve wavered for a moment, but he pushed it aside and continued on. “Yes.” He wove the fingers of his free hand with one of hers. “Kat, I have never in my life felt about anyone the way I feel about you. Now is the perfect moment for you to understand that. You didn’t trap me. I’m exactly where I was meant to be and I’m asking you to be there with me, too. I’m asking you to marry me.” Kate opened and closed her mouth a few times, not finding the right words to come out. “I’m going to set this right here,” Chris kissed her hand and leaned over her to set the open ring box on her nightstand. “You don’t have to answer me tonight. Or tomorrow. Or the next day, or the day after that…. But the question is there to be answered when you’re ready to answer it, ok?” She nodded. “Let’s go to sleep now?” Kate nodded again, laying on her side and letting Chris spoon against her back.


	15. Chapter 15

Kate woke up and felt Chris’ strong arm around her. He had managed to push her shirt up in his sleep to bare the bump and his hand was splayed across it. She smiled slightly at it and then remembered the events of the night before. Her head slowly turned and sure enough, there was the engagement ring nestled in its pretty wooden box on the nightstand. She stilled as she stared at it, thinking over everything that had happened. She had actually tried to ruin their relationship and instead of getting upset, Chris had proposed. It was the weirdest response to a hormone-fueled anxiety attack in the history of ever.  
Carefully reaching over without disturbing Chris, she picked the ring up out of the box. She really did love it. It fit her personality quite well. Had he really been carrying it with him this whole time? Glancing at her still sleeping boyfriend, she rolled the title of fiancé around in her head. After a moment, she slid the ring onto her left ring finger. Somehow the thing fit perfectly like it had always been meant for her.  
“When did my life turn into such a weirdly written fairytale?” She muttered to herself.  
“So, is that a yes?” Chris’ voice startled her and her instant reaction was to throw her hand up. It caught him in the cheek and he yelped, clapping a hand to his face.  
“Oh god! I’m so sorry!” She rolled over and covered his cheek with her palm. “I’m so sorry, Chris.”  
“I forgot your fight or flight instinct was stuck on fight.”  
“Are you ok?”  
“I might have a shiner for my interviews today, but I think I’ll live.” He rubbed his cheekbone. “That’s one way to wake up, I guess.”  
“I’m so sorry.”  
“It’s ok.” He grabbed her hand and kissed her palm. “You put the ring on.”  
“Oh…. Uh….”  
“Pretty sure that was supposed to be my job.”  
Kate sat up and leaned against the headboard. Chris followed suit and watched her examine the ring some more. Finally, she held her left hand up towards him. “Did you mean this?”  
“Every word. I want to spend the rest of my life with you if you’ll have me.”  
“We haven’t even been together a year yet. There’s still so much we don’t know about each other. We’re still trying to figure out how to live together and how I’m going to deal with your life outside of our little New York bubble.”  
“Kat, your grandparents married before they had even been together a year and they were together for over 50 years. You said that was what you wanted. Isn’t that what we have, baby?”  
“How do I know for sure?”  
“Listen to your gut.” He shifted around and turned to face her. “Do you love me?”  
“Yes.”  
“Do I love you?”  
She opened her mouth to say something along the lines of she believed he did, but his look stopped her. “Yes.”  
He placed his hands over his heart. “Then marry me.”  
Kate looked at the ring again as her hand rested on her belly. “I don’t want a shotgun wedding.”  
“So, we’ll get married after Jelly Bean gets here.”  
“You have an answer for everything, don’t you?”  
He grinned. “It’s a curse.”  
She suddenly took the ring off and handed it to him. “I won’t say yes unless you do it right. I’ve had enough of guys just shoving a ring at me and expecting me to say yes.”  
Chris chuckled and climbed out of bed. He dropped the ring as soon as he stood up and had to search for it under the bed, muttering curses and apologizing profusely the whole time. When he finally found it, Kate had climbed out of bed and was heading for the bathroom. “Wait, where are you going?”  
“Sorry, Jelly Bean is using my bladder as a trampoline.” She shut the door and he sighed.  
“She’s making me work for this.” He muttered, standing and walking over to the bathroom door while tossing on his sweatpants. When he heard the toilet flush and the water begin to run in the sink, Chris dropped down to one knee in front of the door and held the ring up. Kate opened the door a moment later and almost tripped over Chris. He steadied her while they laughed, staying on his knee, and finally held the ring up again. “Kat, please marry me?”  
Her hands suddenly cradled her bump and she laughed. “I think Jelly Bean wants me to say yes.”  
“I know Daddy wants Mommy to say yes.”  
Kate smiled and leaned over to take Chris’ face in her hands. She rubbed her thumbs over his soft beard, studying his sparkling blue eyes with hints of green around his pupils, before closing the distance and kissing him gently. Finally, she pulled back about an inch with a smile nearly splitting her face in two. “Yes, Christopher Robert Evans. I will marry you.”  
Chris surged to his feet, pulling her to him and kissing her passionately. “I love you so much!”  
“I love you, too!” She said between kisses. She could taste the salt from their mingling tears.   
His hand shook as he slipped the ring on her finger. “Do you like it?”  
“I love it. It’s perfect.”  
“Is this real? Are we really engaged now?”  
“I think that’s how it works.”  
Chris laughed and took her hand, pulling her towards the bedroom door. “Ma!” He yelled. “Ma!”  
Lisa stuck her head into the hallway, looking startled. “What…..”  
“Ma, she said yes! She said yes! We’re engaged!”  
His mother’s face lit up like it was Christmas morning as Chris and Kate rushed over to her. Lisa caught her son and Kate into a tight hug. “Let me see!” She held her hand out and Kate gave her future-mother-in-law her left hand. “Oh, it’s even prettier on you!”  
“You knew he had it?” Kate asked.  
“Of course I did, sweetie. Chris can’t keep anything secret from me.” Lisa pulled Kate tightly to her. “I am so happy for you two! Welcome to the family, Katie.”  
“Oh, Lisa!” Kate started crying. “Thank you.”  
“You need to call your parents and tell them the happy news.”  
“We should probably get dressed before we tell them.” Chris said, realizing that Kate was just in a t-shirt and he was only wearing sweatpants.  
“That would be a good idea.” Kate laughed, knowing Chris was still intimidated by her dad.   
“Let’s go throw some clothes on and we can video chat with them.”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Kate sat in the audience at the Ellen show. Chris was on stage with Elizabeth Olsen having a good interview after the hilarious dancing game they had played. Ellen had come by before the show started to greet Kate and congratulate them on the baby. Kate had been fine meeting Ellen, but had actually had a bit of a freak out when she met Twitch. Chris had found it absolutely adorable, of course.  
“So, Chris, you’re going to be a daddy soon.” Ellen said.  
“I am.” Chris said, looking over at his newly-minted fiancée.  
“Congratulations to you both! I got to meet your wonderful girlfriend, Kate, earlier. She is just the sweetest thing.” Ellen gestured at Kate and the camera turned to her. Kate waved slightly with her right hand, a little freaked out by the sudden attention.   
“She is pretty amazing.” Chris gave Kate a smile that melted her insides.  
“Elizabeth, have you met her?”  
“I just met her today actually.” Lizzie said, smiling over at Kate. “I’m looking forward to getting to see more of her.”  
Ellen looked over at Kate. “Can I ask: Do you guys know what you’re having?”  
Kate shook her head and Chris said, “We want it to be a surprise.”  
“Have you guys started buying baby things, yet?”  
“Not yet. We were planning to start working on everything once I finished with the promotional trip.”  
“I hope you don’t mind, but I got you guys some things to get you started.” The big doors on the stage opened and Twitch came out pushing a travel system stuffed full of baby paraphernalia. The stage manager gestured for Kate to join Chris on the stage as he walked over to Twitch  
“Holy crap, this is a lot.” Kate said.  
“Thank you so much!” Chris said.  
“There’s a baby monitor in there with a camera system, a smart sock, bottles, onsies, pacifiers, swaddling cloths, washcloths, a Baby Bjorn, a Skip Hop Nightlight Soother, a safety kit, a blanket, and it’s all in amazing baby travel system.”  
“Oh wow!”  
“This is too much!” Kate said, hugging Ellen tightly. “Thank you!”  
“Ellen got Allison and I this travel system and it is amazing.” Twitch said. “You guys will love it.”  
Chris wrapped his arm around Kate’s waist. “This is amazing, Ellen. Thank you.”  
“Yes, thank you!” Kate agreed.  
“Captain America: Civil War comes out May 6th. We’ll be right back.” Ellen waited for the cameras to stop recording and turned to Chris and Kate. “I’m so sorry I bombarded you like that.”  
“No, please don’t worry about it.” Chris said as they walked backstage. “This really is an amazing gift.”  
“Thank you so much.” Kate said, placing her hands on her bump. “Jelly Bean is excited, too.”  
“Oh, is the baby moving?” Lizzie asked excitedly.  
“Yeah.”  
“May I?”  
“Have at it.” Kate allowed Elizabeth and Ellen to feel the baby move.  
“I just started feeling that, too.” Chris announced. “It’s pretty crazy.”  
“You guys call him or her Jelly Bean?” Twitch asked.  
“Yeah.”  
“The app we’re using to track the pregnancy, when we first started, it said the baby was the size of a jelly bean. Plus, that’s Chris’ favorite food, so the name just stuck.” Kate said.  
“Kate, I really love that ring on a very important finger.” Lizzie said. “Are you guys….”  
Chris looked at Kate and silently asked for permission. They had spoken to her parents that morning and then told the rest of his family. Kate’s brother hadn’t been available when they’d called him, though. “We really don’t want to tell people until our families know.” Kate said. “But, yes. It happened this morning, actually.”  
“Congratulations!” Lizzie wrapped Kate in a warm hug as Ellen hugged Chris.  
After hugging Ellen and Twitch, Kate showed off the ring while Chris gave them a watered-down version of the engagement story. Soon enough, the couple was whisked away to head back home before Chris had to go film Jimmy Kimmel. He held her hand in his and stared happily at the ring on her finger.  
“Are you happy?” He asked suddenly.  
“Are you kidding me?” Kate laughed. “I’ve always wanted to get a present from Ellen.”  
That made Chris laugh. “I’ve never gotten a gift from her either, so that was pretty awesome.”  
Kate took Chris’ hand and put it on her belly. “I’m happy, Chris.”  
“Good. Cause I am, too.” He kissed her just as the driver pulled into Chris’ driveway, the gate closing behind them. Chris got out first and ran over to help Kate out of the car. When they walked through the door, Kate let out a yelp. Her brother, Killian, and her niece, Hailey, had been standing there with Lisa. “Surprise!” They yelled.  
“Oh my god!” Kate cried, bursting into tears as Hailey ran forward and hugged her tightly. “My sweet girl! Killi!” Her brother had rushed over and grabbed her into a hug, too. “What are you guys doing here?”  
“Chris flew us out here for the premiere as a surprise for you.” Killian said. “Look at you! You look amazing! Why is there a ring on your left hand?”  
“Chris! You knew when we tried to call him earlier that he was coming here!”  
“Of course I did.” Chris laughed. “I was just playing the part. Ma went and picked them up while we were at Ellen.”  
“Hey! Hi!” Killian said. “Ring on my little sister’s finger. It’s new. Is there some news here?”  
“Chris asked me to marry him this morning.” Kate said, looking at her brother and waiting for him to react.  
“Are you serious?” Killian asked. Chris and Kate nodded their heads. “Congratulations!” He hugged his sister tightly again. “I’m so happy for you guys!”  
“Yay!” Hailey bounced up and down and tugged on Kate’s arm. “Aunt Katie, can I be the flower girl? I wanna be the flower girl, please!”  
Kate laughed and knelt down to be at Hailey’s level. “Of course you’re my flower girl, silly.”  
“Can I talk to the baby?”  
“We should let aunt Katie sit down.” Killian said. “She doesn’t need to be on her feet so much.”  
Kate rolled her eyes. “Not even here five minutes and you’re already being the bossy older brother. I’m only pregnant.”  
“How about we go out to the patio?” Chris offered. “The view is great and Hailey can play with all the toys out there.”  
“You have toys for her?” Killian asked.  
“My niece and nephews come out to visit. They keep trying to play with the shield, so I had to buy some distractions.”  
“What shield?” Hailey asked.  
“You wanna know something cool?” Lisa asked Hailey. The five-year-old’s eyes widened as she nodded. “Chris is going to be your uncle when he marries your aunt Katie and that means that Captain America is going to be your uncle.”  
“Whoa!” Hailey turned to Chris. “You’re Captain America?”  
“You remember seeing him in The Avengers?” Killian asked.  
“Oh yeah!” Hailey’s eyes widened. “Can I play with the shield.”  
Chris laughed. “Maybe later?”  
“Ok!” Hailey took his hand and he led her over to the toy box. “Where’s Gally?”  
“She’s with Chris’ sister Shanna.” Kate said. “Her and her brother Dodger are staying with her until we get back.”  
“She has a brother?”  
“I told you that, silly.”  
“Oh yeah! I remember.”  
Chris came over and joined Kate on the sofa, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. Lisa and Killian each took one of the outdoor armchairs on either side of the couch. “How are you feeling, sis?” Killian asked.  
“I’m ok. Tired mostly. Sleeping is kind of hard.”  
“Maura started feeling that way in her third trimester. Are you sure you’ll be up for travelling overseas?”  
“I will be perfectly fine, thank you. Chris has already asked multiple times and I tell him the same thing.”  
“I’m just worried about you. We both are.”  
“I appreciate it, but I will be fine. I’m really excited for it.”  
“Oh, in all the hubbub, I forgot that you got a bouquet, Katie.” Lisa said.  
“I did?”  
“Yes.” Lisa walked into the house and grabbed a large bouquet of sunflowers and roses in a pretty green vase. “They were delivered just after we got here from the airport.”  
Chris held the vase of flowers while Kate pulled the card out. “Who are they from?” He asked.  
“Awe! They’re from Hemsworth. ‘I hope you’re feeling better today. Tell Evans if he’s not taking care of you, I’ll assemble the Avengers to take him out. Welcome to the family.’” Kate laughed. “He’s so sweet.”  
“He texted me last night that he really enjoyed meeting you.”  
“My sister is getting flowers from Thor and is marrying Captain America.” Killian said.  
“Ha!” Kate cried. “I’m going to be Mrs. America! Suck it beauty queens.” Chris let out a loud laugh as he set the flowers down on the glass coffee table.   
“How did mom and dad react?”  
“I don’t know.”  
“What do you mean?”  
“They seemed…. I don’t know.” They had managed to get Helena and Bill on a video chat together that morning. The two had seemed happy and had shown some excitement, but they had definitely seemed a little off. “Maybe they think it’s too quick?”  
“Well, they weren’t nuts about you having a baby with someone you barely knew.”  
“And you were?”  
“Hell no. Sorry, Chris, but my first reaction was that I wanted to punch you in the face. Then I remembered that it took two to create my niece or nephew and I wanted to kick my sister’s ass, too. And then I calmed down and started thinking rationally.” Killian reached over and took Kate’s hand. “All I’ve ever wanted was for you to find the happiness you deserve. I’ve never cared about who or what it was that brought you that happiness, just so long as you got it.” Kate squeezed her brother’s hand. “Looking back at the last few months, I’ve never seen or heard Kat happier than when she’s talking about you, Chris. If our parents are being weird about this, I think it’s just them being extremely protective. They’re happy for you guys, it’s just going to take them some time to adjust, I think.”  
“I hope so.”  
“Lisa, are you happy for them?”  
“Of course I am!” Lisa laughed. “I knew from the minute she walked into my house that she would be the last woman my son brought home.”  
“You did?” Kate asked.  
“To be perfectly honest, I had a hunch before you came to dinner. The way Chris talked about you and the way Scott described how you two interacted…. It was pretty obvious you were special. When you and Chris walked in, he was just different to me. Something in him had clicked and I spotted it immediately. Oh, Katie, don’t cry!”  
“Sorry. Hormones.” Kate shook her head. “Any little thing can set me off.”  
“I think what your parents are worried about is whether or not you truly grasp what Chris’ life is really like. Your mother talked with me about it when we were at Christmastown. I don’t know if I put her worries at ease, but I do think you are more than capable of handling his career.”  
“Despite my freak out last night.”  
“You were doing great until the incident with Minka.” Chris reminded her. “You won Hemmy over pretty fast and Mackie gushed about you, too. Lizzie is excited to go to lunch with you before we leave LA. I think the only time you’ve lost your cool was meeting Twitch.”  
“You met Twitch!?” Killian gasped.  
“Yeah.” Kate giggled. “I started crying at him. He was so sweet. He even invited me and Chris over to hang out with him and Allison and it made me cry more.”  
“That was really sweet of him.” Lisa said.  
“I’ve been such a huge fan of him since he competed on So You Think You Can Dance. I will probably die if I ever get to meet Travis Wall. He’s incredible and I want to take a dance class with him.”  
“When was the last time you danced?” Killian asked.  
“Um…. The show I did for Dahlia before I moved to New York.”  
“You didn’t do the Marvel show?”  
“No. I was going to go back to Richmond for it, but I found out I was pregnant and I just didn’t feel like doing it anymore.”  
“I tried to get her to do it.” Chris said. “So did Scott.”  
“I just didn’t feel like I needed it anymore. My priorities were already shifting, anyway.”  
“Please don’t give up dancing.” Killian said. “I mean, I don’t mind you giving up the burlesque because I’m your brother and that weirds me out a little bit, but you’ve always loved to dance.”  
“When will I have time, though? Between work and being a mom….”  
“We’ll find time, babe.” Chris said. “Maybe we can take private lessons or something.”  
“I love you, but I ain’t tap dancing. My feet don’t move like that.”  
Chris laughed. “Well, then we’ll take ballroom dancing or something.”  
“We’ll see.”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
The doorbell rang and Megan walked over to answer it. Kate was sitting in the living room with Jenn putting the final touches on her hair and makeup while Chris and Killian talked and drank beers in the kitchen. Hailey was excitedly playing a board game with Lisa at the dining room table. Everyone looked over to see Robert Downey Jr walk into the foyer with his wife, Susan.  
“Hey!” Chris called happily, rushing over to give his friend a hug. “What are you doing here?”  
“I came to meet your baby mama before it gets crazy.” Downey said. Kate stood up and situated her cerulean blue, 1950s inspired dress while Jenn fixed the wide, off the shoulder sleeves. “I know you.”  
“There is absolutely no way that you remember me.” Kate said.  
“You’ve met Downey before?” Chris asked.  
“You look really familiar. Where do I know you from?” Downey asked.  
“You were filming US Marshalls in Kentucky.” Kate said.  
Downey’s face lit up with recognition. “We ate at the restaurant your dad was the chef at. You were in a leg brace because you had just had surgery!”  
“How the hell do you remember that?”  
“Why haven’t you told me about that?” Chris asked.  
“Get over here!” Downey pulled Kate into a hug. “You would be surprised what I can remember. Your dad was a dick.”  
Kate laughed. “Yes, he really was.”  
“Look at you! You were, what…. Fourteen?”  
“Thirteen.”  
“The knee is ok?”  
“Well, I’m not figure skating anymore because it didn’t heal right, but it functions enough to keep me mobile.”  
“I’m sorry. You were excited to get back to it.”  
“Yes, I was!”  
Downey hugged her again. “This is serendipitous.”  
“It’s something all right.”  
“Look at you! You grew up into a very sophisticated young lady. Kate, this is my wife, Susan.”  
Kate shook Susan’s hand. “It’s lovely to meet you.”  
“It’s great to finally meet the woman that has the Avengers in a tizzy.” Susan laughed. “My husband has been excited to meet the woman that finally domesticated Evans.”  
“I can’t say he’s domesticated. He’s still leaving dishes in the sink and forgets to put the toilet seat down.”  
“He just needs some training. They all do.”  
“Standing right here.” Chris muttered.  
“Get used to it, brother.” Downey said. “Mrs. Evans!” He hugged Lisa tightly. “It’s great to see you again. Did you gain another grandkid?”  
“This is Hailey,” Chris said, lifting Hailey up in his arms. “She belongs to my soon-to-be brother-in-law over there, Killian.”  
“Not soon.” Kate corrected as Killian shook Downey’s hand. “After the baby’s born.”  
“That’s soon. You’re almost in your third trimester.”  
“We’re not having a wedding as soon as I give birth, Chris.”  
“Hold on.” Downey looked between Kate and Chris. Chris took Kate’s left hand and lifted it to show off the ring. “Congratulations!” He pulled the couple into a hug, kissing each of their cheeks. “This is momentous! I call dibs on the bachelor party!”  
Chris laughed. “Scott already has, but I’m sure he wouldn’t mind you helping.”  
“You’re not pulling my leg right now? You’re serious?”  
“Dead serious. It happened a couple of days ago.”  
“Evans!” Downey hugged him tightly, actually fighting back tears. “I am so happy for you, pal.”  
“Thank you, man.”  
Downey turned to Kate and hugged her tightly. “And you! I can’t wait to catch up with you. Get your side of the story of how Chris wooed you.”  
“I’m sure he embellished some.” Kate said, smiling lovingly up at her fiancé.  
“Somehow, I doubt that. So, are you ready for your first red carpet?”  
“As I’ll ever be, I suppose.”  
“Don’t be nervous.” Susan said. “You’re going to have fun.”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
The Captain America: Civil War red carpet was a bit overwhelming at first. They had pulled over into a random parking lot so Chris could get into a blue Audi sports cars. The publicity team for the movie had decided that Captain America and Iron Man should arrive separately in cars matching their characters’ colors. Megan had kept Lisa, Kate, Killian, and Hailey close by while Chris arrived on the carpet after them. Instead of going straight for pictures, though, he walked over to Kate and gripped her hand tightly.  
“Are you ok?” Kate asked.  
“I just….” Chris took a deep breath, his hand shaking somewhat. “I need you.”  
Kate nodded. “Whatever you need, I’m here.”  
He nodded, leaning down to kiss her quickly. The sound of screams and camera shutters going crazy made them break apart. “Megan….”  
“Kate’s not going anywhere.” Megan assured him. She knew how Chris got at these big events. Hopefully having Kate with him would help his nerves. “Do you want me to line up any interviews beyond the Marvel one you’re obligated to do?”  
“No.” Chris sighed, thinking better of it. “Maybe one or two.”  
“Ok. You guys can follow me over here for photocalls.”  
“I’m sorry about all this.” Chris said, still gripping Kate’s hand tightly.  
“I’m ok right now.” Kate assured him, squeezing back. His vice grip lessened somewhat. “I’m pretending that I’m at a burlesque show and these screaming people are just excited about the act.”  
He smiled down at her, some of the tension melting from his stance. “You look incredible, baby.”  
“You don’t look so bad yourself.” She reached up and adjusted his tie some, knowing that these pictures were going to be everywhere.  
Chris leaned down to whisper in her ear, “Maybe you could put on the show when we get home.” Kate playfully rolled her eyes at him.  
They followed Megan to the photocall area in front of the advertisement boards and Kate tried to remember the poses that Jenn and Megan had coached her on. She crossed her legs at the ankles and leaned on Chris for balance. He put his hand on her bump and they took a few moments to pose like the happy couple they were. Reporters started to ask about the ring on Kate’s finger, but Chris and Kate had decided not to talk about it in public yet.  
Mackie walked up behind them and photobombed them before grabbing Kate into a tight hug, lifting her off her feet. “You look incredible!”  
“Thank you.” Kate kissed him sweetly on the cheek.  
“Are you doing good? This isn’t too much?”   
“No. I’m ok.”  
“She’s keeping me calm.” Chris said, hugging his friend.  
Downey and Susan arrived not long after. Susan and Kate stood off to the side while Downey and Chris took pictures together and with Mackie. A hand touched Kate’s shoulder and she turned to find Sebastian Stan standing there. “Seb!” Kate said, smiling and hugging the man that Chris called a friend. They had met the other day when Chris had filmed Jimmy Kimmel.  
“It’s great to see you again.” Sebastian said.  
“You, too!”  
“I didn’t get to tell you congratulations on the engagement. That’s so exciting for you and Chris.”  
“Thank you so much.”  
Sebastian was pulled away for photos and Susan linked her arm through Kate’s. Kate looked around for her brother and Killian smiled and waved at her from his place with Lisa. Hailey was looking around in wonder.  
“Welcome to the Avengers’ wives club.” Susan said.   
“Do I need to bake anything for the meetings?” Kate asked.  
Susan laughed. “There’s not many of us in this club. And none that are as high profile as the two of us.”  
“That’s a bit scary.”  
“Don’t worry. You’re doing fantastic.”  
“You are so nice.”  
“You make it easy to be. It is absolutely amazing that you met my husband before any of us.”  
“It’s amazing he remembers it! It was so long ago.”  
“And he wasn’t at his best then, either.”  
“I honestly couldn’t tell.”  
Chris beckoned Kate over and she squeezed Susan’s hand before walking over to join him. They continued down the red carpet together. They ended up taking pictures with Susan and Downey. Megan had actually told Kate that she would end up with Susan a lot at these Marvel premieres. Their significant others were the two main heroes in the franchise. When they made it into the theatre, Chris was once again separated from her. Megan led Kate, Lisa, Killian, and Hailey to a group of seats blocked off for them. Once again, Susan was sitting near Kate. The two women exchanged phone numbers while they waited.   
Megan came over to Kate. “I forgot to mention this to you, but when this is over, Chris has an interview with Rolling Stone. It’s happening at your guys’ house.”  
“I didn’t know they did that.” Kate said.  
“Not always. I just wanted to give you a heads up that they’ll probably want to include you in the interview. You don’t have to if you don’t want to, though.”  
“Ok. Do you think I should?”  
“It’s totally up to you. I just want you to be comfortable.”  
Susan leaned over. “Kate, I think you should. It would be a really good opportunity for people to get to know the woman Chris is going to marry. It’s also good practice for the future because this won’t be the last time Chris does an at-home interview. You don’t have to divulge anything you’re uncomfortable with.”  
“Ok. I guess I can talk to them if they want to.”  
“Great.” Megan smiled brightly at Kate before heading off again.  
The lights went down and the cast was brought out on stage to introduce the film. Once that was over, Chris finally made his way over to her.  
“That was a spectacle.” Kate said as he sat down with her.  
“Little bit. You ok?”  
“Wonderful. I’m excited to see the movie.”  
Usually Chris didn’t stay to watch the movies he was in, but this time was different. “I’m excited for you to see it.” He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and she snuggled against him as the movie started.


	16. Chapter 16

Kate sat in the nursery with Gally curled up next to her and Dodger sitting with his head on her leg. She looked around the room and admired hers and Chris’ handiwork. They had gone with a Winnie the Pooh theme, using the original drawings of the characters since the colors were softer. Chris had bought a beautiful and very plush, white and gray glider with a gliding foot rest for the nursery and it was Kate’s favorite place in the penthouse now. She would spend hours rocking in the chair and dreaming up what her child’s life would be.   
The glider was the only piece of furniture in the room beyond a bookshelf that was already starting to collect books. The travel system from Ellen was sitting in one corner of the room with a large box full of the rest of the amazing gifts from her. The rest of the furniture hadn’t been bought yet. She and Chris were ordered not to buy anything beyond the glider.  
Kate was now four weeks away from her due date and was beyond ready for it to be over with. The world tour she’d joined Chris for had taken a lot out of her. While she had had a ton of fun, her body just hadn’t been up to the task of that much fun and growing a small human at the same time. She had taken another week off and then gone back to work. Unfortunately, the doctor was worried about her blood pressure and her showing some early warning signs of preeclampsia, so he had asked her to stop working as much as she had been.  
Danielle had been amazing about everything. She had two kids of her own and understood what Kate needed better than Kate herself did. She had promised that Kate’s job was secure when she was ready to come back full time. Until then, she would only work part time if she felt up to it.  
Chris walked into the nursery and chuckled. “You know, you can’t hide forever.”  
“Who says I can’t try?” Kate retorted.  
He just held his hands out to help her stand up. “Everyone is downstairs waiting.”  
She took his hands and let him lift her to her feet. “I hate baby showers. And bridal showers for future reference.”  
“Noted. Not like I can do anything about it. You’ve met my mother. And my sisters and my brother. You’re welcome to fight that.”  
“Chicken shit.”   
“But hey, the cake is really pretty.”  
“You weren’t supposed to go downstairs.”  
“I needed something to drink. They kicked me out pretty quickly.”   
Lisa, Carly, Shanna, Scott, and Helena had all decided that they were going to decorate and Kate and Chris weren’t allowed to see any of it. They didn’t even know who was on the guestlist. The whole thing had been kept hush-hush from the parents-to-be.   
“I can’t wait to get our place to ourselves again.”  
“It is feeling a bit crowded this week. Careful!” Since the doctor had mentioned the preeclampsia (and Chris had done research on it), he had been hyperactively protective of her. He freaked out if she tried to walk up and down stairs by herself. She just rolled her eyes at him.  
“Happy baby shower!” Everyone yelled and Chris and Kate came down the stairs.  
There were so many people there! Helena, Bill and Jan, and Lisa, Carly, Shanna, and Scott were obviously there; Chris’ dad, Bob and his wife; Kate’s aunt Charlotte had come up from Virginia and her uncle Ron and aunt Debbie had come in from Chicago; Scarlett Johansson had come; Downey and his wife were there; Chris’ best friend, Tara, had made it down; April was there; Danielle had come with her husband, Charles; Amy had driven up for the occasion; Sebastian Stan had shown up; and Megan was there, too. The place was decorated with pink and blue streamers and balloons that said, “It’s a Boy” and “It’s A Girl” on them. There were a few that said, “Boy or Girl?” There was a massive pile of presents in the living room. The cake and food had been set up in a beautiful display on the kitchen island and a drink station with a blue punch and a pink punch was set up on the kitchen counter. There were little woodland creature decorations everywhere, too.  
Carly and Scott walked over to Kate and Chris. Carly draped a “Mommy-To-Be” sash over Kate while Scott pinned a “Daddy-To-Be” button to Chris’ shirt. Lisa and Helena were both wearing pins that said “Grandma-To-Be.” Someone had made a diaper cake and set it next to the actual cake, which was two tiers of cutesy woodland creatures running amok. There was a photobooth area with different props for the pictures that Danielle had kindly set up and offered to run.  
“Happy baby shower!” Carly squealed, kissing Kate’s cheek.  
“That is a fuckton of presents.” Kate said.  
“We’ll get to those. Right now, we want pictures!”   
Chris and Kate were stood at the photobooth and the guests that wanted pictures were allowed to pick the props. It took a good half hour before they were allowed to get food. Chris fixed her a plate so she could go sit down. The love seat had been decorated with blue and pink streamers and someone had created the backs of thrones out of cardboard. One said Daddy and was painted blue and the other said Mommy and was painted pink. There were even fake pink and blue jewels glued to both of them to make them even more throne-like.  
Carly made Chris and Kate sit in their respective seats while people ate and Shanna hosted the three games they had planned. April won the game where the guests had to use string to guess how big around Kate’s stomach was. She received a gift bag filled with home spa items. The second game was where the guests had to guess what candy bar was melted in the different diapers. Tara had won that game and was given a gift bag filled with candles, an engraved picture frame, and various candies. The third and final game was called “My Water Broke” where everyone had been given an ice cube with a plastic baby in it. The first person who’s baby was free of the ice had to yell that their water broke. Sebastian had been overenthusiastic when yelling it, startling everyone in the room. He had walked away with a $50 VISA gift card.  
While everyone started throwing their plates away, Helena had Chris and Kate cut the cake. She stayed to serve the pieces to everyone while the parents-to-be took their love seat thrones again. Carly, Shanna, and Scott had begun moving presents closer to the love seat to be passed over to Chris and Kate. While they waited for everyone to get their slices of cake and eat them, Scarlett came over and sat down next to Kate on Chris’ side of the loveseat. Chris had gotten up and was across the room talking with his father and Bill. Probably getting some dad advice.  
“You’re not having any fun, are you?” Scarlett said conspiratorially to Kate.  
“Not in the slightest.” Kate said. “I hate showers. And I feel like a bloated whale.”   
“I hate these things, too. Just give me the presents and don’t make a fuss.”  
“Exactly!”   
“And for the record, you don’t look like a bloated whale.” She held her hand out to Kate. “Your fiancé sucks at introductions. I’m Scarlett.”  
“Kate.”  
“I’m sorry we’re just now meeting. I wanted to come along on the Civil War tour, but I had some prior engagements.”  
“It’s ok.”  
“Chris has talked almost non-stop about you and the baby. I’m so happy for you guys.”  
“I’ve actually been kind of nervous to meet you.”  
“Yeah? Why’s that?”  
“Chris talks so highly of you. You’re one of his closest friends.”  
“Oh, I’m not that scary.”  
“I didn’t think you would be, and hey, I survived meeting Tara.”  
“She’s a cool chick.”  
“Yeah.”  
“If I’m being honest, I’ve been kind of nervous to meet you, too.”  
Kate laughed. “Me? Oh god, why?”  
“Well, I’ve met a few of Chris’ girlfriends. None of them, in my opinion, have measured up to what I think my friend deserves. I can be a little protective of him. I was a little nervous that you wouldn’t measure up, too.”  
“That scares me.”  
“Don’t worry. From what I can tell, you exceed expectations. Chris looks genuinely happier than I’ve ever seen him. Downey, Mackie, Lizzie, and Hemmy all sing your praises.”  
“They’re sweet.”  
“So how are you feeling?”  
“Um…. Done. I’m feeling done. If Jelly Bean wants to vacate the premises, I won’t stop him or her.”  
“I remember those days. They pretty much sucked.”  
“Yes. Yes, they do.”  
“You’re in the home stretch now.”  
“Thankfully!”  
“Any contractions yet?”  
“Lots of Braxton Hicks. They’ve been happening a lot on and off today.”  
“It’s all the excitement.”  
“That’s what I figured.”  
“Oh god, have you started nesting yet?”  
“Yes! It’s insane! It’s been driving me batty not to have the furniture we need to finish the nursery. We were told to hold off on the big stuff.”  
“I would love to see it.”  
“Yeah?” Kate started the struggle to get up and Scarlett helped her to her feet. The two women headed around into the kitchen and started up the stairs.  
“Whoa, hey.” Chris came rushing over. “Where are you going?”  
“To show Scarlett the nursery.”  
“I’ll come with.”   
“Chris, baby, I can walk up the stairs without help.”  
“But….”  
“Go back to the party, Evans.” Scarlett joked. “You’re being a helicopter mom right now.”  
Chris looked at them with wide, puppy dog eyes. “I’m immune to those things now.” Kate said. “Put them away before you strain your eyes. I’ll be fine.”   
Scarlett laughed and followed Kate upstairs, turning briefly to mouth to Chris, “I really like her.”  
Ten minutes later, the two walked back downstairs arm in arm and laughing. It made Chris happy to see that they had hit it off and seemed as thick as thieves already. Lisa walked over and apologized to Scarlett before taking Kate away. She and Chris spent the next hour and a half opening all of the presents that their guests had brought and ones that had been sent from friends that couldn’t make it to the shower. Carly was writing down what they got and who sent it so Chris and Kate could send out thank you cards later.  
When the shower finally wound down and people began leaving, they were given cute little gift bags with travel-sized hand sanitizers from Bath and Body Works, mini-jar candles from Yankee Candle, some butter mints in a little baby bottle, and little engraved frames holding a picture from Chris’ and Kate’s maternity shoot that Danielle had insisted on doing. The only ones left at the end of the night were Amy, Lisa, and Scott. Helena and Bill had declined the offer to stay at the penthouse and had gotten a hotel nearby. Lisa and Amy were staying at the penthouse in the two guest rooms while Scott was taking the couch from Kate’s garage apartment that Chris had put in the downstairs guest room that they had turned into an office for him and Kate. Carly and Shanna had driven back to Sudbury so Carly could get back to her kids and Shanna could get to work in the morning.  
“We’ll start working on putting this all together tomorrow.” Lisa said.  
“I can’t believe we got all of this stuff!” Chris said. “Everyone is so sweet for doing this.” Kate let out a heavy breath and rubbed her stomach. “What’s wrong?” Chris was on instant high alert.  
“Braxton-Hicks.” Kate said. “They’ve been happening on and off all day.”  
“Are you sure? Should we call the doctor?”  
“I have an appointment tomorrow. I’ll be fine.”  
“Do you need anything?” Lisa asked.  
“Actually, I’ve got a headache and I’m feeling kind of tired. I want to go upstairs and lay down.”  
Chris stood up and helped her to her feet. “I’ll be back down in a little bit.”  
“Go on up and stay with her.” Lisa said. “We’ll clean up down here.”  
“Thanks, ma.”  
Kate sighed as Chris helped her change into her usual oversized T-shirt she slept in, take her contacts out, and lay down on their bed. “Thanks.”  
“Are you ok?”  
“Could you grab some Tylenol for me?”  
“Of course.” Chris rushed into the bathroom and came out with Tylenol and a glass of water. He set to work massaging her feet, but stopped when he noticed how swollen they were. “Babe, are you sure you’re ok?”  
“I’m a little dizzy, but I think that’s cause of the headache and all the fun today.”  
“Kat, your feet and legs are really swollen. That’s a sign of preeclampsia. So are headaches and dizziness.”  
“The doctor did say I was at risk. We’re going tomorrow, so we can ask then.”  
“Are you sure you don’t want to call now?”  
“Chris, it’s late.”  
“It’s nine at night.”  
“Well, that’s late enough.” Kate curled up on her side. “I’m going to sleep.”  
“I’m going to brush my teeth and take my contacts out, then I’ll join you.”  
“You don’t have to.”  
“I want to.” He leaned over and kissed her.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Chris woke up to the sounds of his name being called between gagging coming from the bathroom. The clock said it was around three in the morning. He quickly jumped out of bed and ran to the bathroom. Kate was clinging to the toilet, shaking and crying. “Hey….” He moved to her side and let out a curse when he saw the blood in the toilet. “Kate!”  
“Chris, I don’t feel good.” Kate sobbed.  
“We’re going to the hospital.” He jumped up and ran out of the room. “MA!” Chris burst through the guest bedroom door, startling his mother awake. “Ma, it’s Kate! Help!”  
Lisa was up like a shot. She followed Chris into the bedroom and then pushed past him when she heard Kate. “Oh no! Sweetheart…. Chris, get her some clothes.”  
“What’s going on?” Amy asked from the doorway to the bedroom.  
“I’m taking Kate to the hospital.” Chris said, grabbing a pair of yoga pants out of one of Kate’s drawers while dialing the number to a car service on his cell phone. “Can you go wake up Scott?”  
“Yeah!” Amy turned and ran downstairs.  
Lisa was running a washrag over Kate’s face, whispering comforting words to her. “Come on, Katie. Let’s get your clothes on.” Chris came over and gave his mother the yoga pants as he dialed the emergency number to Kate’s doctor.  
Scott ran in, throwing a shirt on. “What’s going on?”  
“Scott, come help me.” Scott rushed over and helped his mother get Kate into her pants and shoes. “Amy, honey, do you have Helena’s phone number?”  
“Yes, ma’am.” Amy said. “I’ll call her. Where are you going? I mean, what hospital?”  
“New York Presbyterian.” Chris said. “It’s not far.”  
“Ok. I’ll call her.”  
“Here,” Chris grabbed the pen and notepad out of Kate’s nightstand drawer. He quickly wrote down a number for the car service and another number underneath it. “Call this number and give them this account number. Send a car for her family, they’re at the Millennium Hilton, and then get one for yourself. I’ve already got one on the way.” He turned and swept Kate up into his arms. Scott and Lisa helped steady them as they walked down the stairs.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Kate looked around the private birthing suite and sighed. She had been poked with needles and had an IV in her arm, ready to administer drugs if needed. They had brought in an ultrasound and had hooked her up to a fetal monitor after taking her for a CT scan. Chris sat on the bed next to her, holding her hand. He was the only one allowed in with her right now.  
“I just want to go home.” Kate said, laying her head down on Chris’ shoulder.  
He kissed the top of her head. “I know, baby.”  
Doctor Beauchamp walked into the room and looked at the waiting couple. “Well, the blood in your vomit is from a small tear in the lining of your esophagus. Sometimes this happens with the nausea and vomiting during pregnancy. It’s manageable if we can control the nausea and get you to eat soft foods for seven to ten days. What concerns me is the protein in your urine, Kate, and how high your blood pressure is. We talked about you being preeclamptic and you’re showing enough of the signs right now.”  
“So, what’s the plan, Doc?” Chris asked.  
“I want you, Kate, to try and make it to 39 weeks. Right now, you’re still within reason to give birth naturally like you want, so what I’m going to do is keep you here for the next two weeks so we can monitor you, but you’re on strict bedrest.”  
“You’re not going to induce?” Kate asked.  
“I could and I might even be able to do it more naturally than giving you Pitocin since you’re dilated to one, but I don’t want to and I know you want to avoid the Pitocin at all costs.”  
“Yes!”   
“I want Jelly Bean to bake for a little longer, so two weeks here on bedrest. You’re only allowed out of that bed to go to the bathroom and to take very quick showers. Chris, you may want to go home and pack some of Kate’s stuff. Comfortable, loose fitting clothes, please.”  
“You got it.” Chris said. “Anything.”  
“Ok. I’m going to go discuss with the nurses everything they need to know and I’ll be back later with a list of some super fun bedrest rules.” Doctor Beauchamp walked out and Kate burst into tears.  
“Hey,” Chris pulled Kate to him tightly. “Shh, it’s ok. It’s only two weeks and then we’ll meet our little Jelly Bean.”  
“But there’s so much to get done before then!”  
“Ma isn’t going anywhere anytime soon and neither is Scott. I’m pretty sure your mom isn’t leaving now. I can call in whoever else we need to get the stuff put together before the baby arrives.”  
“But I won’t get to help.”  
“I can bring some stuff here for you to work on.”  
“I just want to go home.”  
“You will. And when you do, you’ll be holding Jelly Bean.” Chris kissed her sweetly. “I’m going to go let everyone know what’s going on and see if we can have anyone back here besides us.”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Over the next week, Kate didn’t show much change. Which wasn’t a bad thing. She had started to dilate some more, so the doctor was happy that she might even give birth without any help. Bill and Jan had gone home, but Helena had decided to stay to be there with her daughter. She and Lisa were staying at the penthouse with Scott. They Facetimed with Chris and Kate so the couple could help finish decorating the nursery with the furniture they had gotten.   
On her twelfth day there, July 8th, Dr. Beauchamp had decided they didn’t need to wait any longer. She decided to try the more natural induction of labor by going in and stripping the membranes. It was extremely painful, and Chris had no idea how that much of the doctor’s arm fit up inside his fiancée, but it was effective. Kate’s contractions had set in and she went into active labor. Chris was by her side for every single minute with Lisa and Helena taking turns on Kate’s free side. Kate labored for fourteen hours before it was finally time to push. Dr. Beauchamp allowed Kate to move around and try to find more comfortable positions to deliver the baby in, but nothing was working.  
“Kate, the baby is stuck and going into distress.” Dr. Beauchamp announced. “We need to get this baby out now. I’m going to have to do a c-section.”  
“No.” Kate growled, trying to push again.  
“Kate, you need to stop pushing. This baby isn’t going to come out naturally and you’re only going to hurt yourself and the baby if you keep trying.”  
Kate let out a scream as another contraction bore down on her. “I need to push!”  
“Kate, your blood pressure is through the roof. You need to calm down.”  
Chris tried soothing Kate, but nothing helped. Doctor Beauchamp called for the anesthesiologist to meet them in the OR with a spinal tap while she administered an anti-anxiety medicine. Kate was so scared and so worked up that the medicine didn’t have much of an effect. Chris was made to stay in the room while they got Kate prepped for surgery. He paced the floor, waiting for them to come get him. They had told him it wouldn’t take more than ten minutes. It had now been thirty minutes. He was about to start kicking doors in when a nurse came to get him.  
Kate was strapped down to the OR table with a sheet pinned up as a screen. She was still panicking and gripped his hand tightly. He whispered comforting words and tried to keep her focus on him. She kept complaining about how bad her upper back was hurting and she couldn’t get comfortable. The doctor and nurses begged her to stop writhing, but she was in too much pain. They gave her a booster on her spinal tap and that seemed to do the trick some. The doctor took advantage to quickly perform the c-section. Chris stood up to peer over the curtain to see the baby come slithering out of the open wound. The baby’s cry echoed in the room and Kate closed her eyes in relief.  
“It’s a girl!” Doctor Beauchamp announced.  
Chris turned to Kate and started to say something, but the words died on his lips as the sound of the alarm on the heart monitor went off. The nurses came up and told him to leave, but he refused. He began yelling at them to help Kate and security was brought in to physically remove him from the room. They took him back to the birthing suite where his mother and Helena were waiting. They jumped up and he started to sob.  
“I don’t know what’s happening!” Chris cried. “They won’t tell me anything. She was in pain and they gave her more drugs and just after the baby was born, her heart rate dropped.”


	17. Chapter 17

Lisa held her son tightly as he sobbed. He was in hysterics. Helena was back out at the nurse’s station again demanding to speak with anyone that could give her information on what was happening with her daughter. Scott was pacing furiously around the room. Lisa had demanded that he be allowed back since he was family.   
“Why won’t they tell us anything?” Scott growled.  
“Those nurses are useless!” Helena snapped as she marched back into the room. “She’s my daughter for crying out loud!”  
“I refuse to believe she’s anything but ok.” Lisa said. This caused Chris to let out another sob. “Would they tell you anything about the baby?”  
“Nothing.” Helena said. “The doctor hasn’t cleared them to divulge any information.”  
Finally, forty-five minutes after Chris had been dragged out of the OR, Dr. Beauchamp came into the room. Chris jumped to his feet. “What’s going on? Where’s my fiancée? Where’s my baby?”  
“Kate’s in recovery.” Dr. Beauchamp said. “Her blood pressure bottomed out. We think it was a reaction to the booster and the anti-anxiety meds after a hard labor. We had to give her a shot of adrenaline to bring her back.” Chris gripped the wall to keep from collapsing.  
“Is she ok?” Helena asked. “Is my daughter ok?”  
“She’s on her way to ok.”  
“What about the baby?” Lisa asked.  
“Your granddaughter is doing good. She’s in the NICU right now just as a precaution since she’s pre-term. Chris, you can go see her.”  
“What about Kate?” Chris asked.  
“I’m headed back there now. Once I feel she’s stable enough, we’ll move her back in here. This is Nurse Rose,” Dr. Beauchamp gestured to the middle-aged woman with brown hair in pink scrubs standing in the doorway. “She’ll take you to your daughter.”  
Chris looked at his mother and Helena. “Go!” Lisa prodded, pushing him towards the door. “We’ll be right here.”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Kate’s eyes fluttered open again and she realized she was back in the birthing suite. Her nose itched like crazy, but when she went to scratch it she noticed her hand was shaking fiercely. She remembered waking up once before covered in multiple warm blankets and heating pads and shaking even harder than she was now. That room hadn’t been as nice as this one. She giggled at that random thought.  
“Hey, sweetheart.” Helena said. Kate turned her head to find her mother sitting on the bed with her. “Welcome back.”  
“Mom?” Kate croaked.  
“Hang on.” Helena turned and grabbed the cup of ice water off the nightstand. “Drink this.” She helped Kate sip on the straw and the cold liquid felt amazing.  
“Why am I shaking so bad?”  
“We almost lost you, baby. The doctor had to give you adrenaline. She said you would probably be shaky.”  
Kate looked around the room. “Where’s Chris?”  
“He’s with your daughter down in the NICU.” Lisa said, coming to sit on Kate’s other side. Kate realized that Scott, Carly, and Shanna were also in the room. “They’ll be on their way here soon.”  
“Daughter? We have a daughter?”  
“Chris says she’s perfect.” Scott said, standing behind his mother.  
Kate started to cry and Helena pulled her close and held her. She stroked her hair soothingly, whispering comforting words to her while Lisa rubbed her arm. It took her a long few minutes to finally compose herself. “Why does my nose itch so bad?” Kate complained.  
“That’s the morphine.” Carly said. “It may do wonders for the pain, but it made me itch like crazy.”  
The door opened and a nurse wheeled in an empty bassinet. Chris walked in behind her holding a tiny bundle in his arms. He smiled brightly when he saw Kate was awake. Lisa stood up to give him her spot and Chris timidly sat down. Lisa and Helena ushered Scott, Carly, and Shanna out into the hallway to give the new parents some time to themselves.   
“Hey.” Chris said to Kate. “You wanna meet our daughter?” Kate smiled, a sob hitching in her chest. She reached out to touch the perfect little cherub cheek, but her hand still shook. She jerked it back, scared to even touch her daughter while she was like this. “Hey, it’s ok. Shh, it’s ok. Dr. Beauchamp warned us that you would be pretty shaky and that it would take a little time to wear off.”  
“I can’t even touch her.”  
“You will. The shaking will stop and I’m not going anywhere.” Chris gently slipped his shoes off, trying not to jostle the baby or Kate, and slid all the way onto the bed, still cradling their daughter. He settled back on the raised bed, his eyes never leaving their daughter’s face.  
Kate laid her head on his shoulder and stared at their little Jelly Bean. “So, you’re the one that’s been throwing dance parties in my belly.”  
Chris chuckled. “She looks like you.”  
“No. She looks like you. Look at her nose and her lips and her chin….”  
“Look at the shape of her eyes and those cheekbones. That’s all you, baby.”  
“What did you name her?”  
“I haven’t.”  
“Oh.”  
“I won’t name her without you.”  
“Thank you. How long was I out?”  
“About four hours.”  
“Wow.”  
He finally tore his eyes away from their baby. “How do you feel?”  
“I itch.” Kate rubbed her nose again. “Especially my nose. Carly said that’s a side effect of the morphine.”  
Chris chuckled and kissed the tip of her nose. “Other than the itching?”  
“Tired, mostly. Like I ran three marathons in a row. I’m starting to feel sore, too.”  
“We should call the nurse, then.”  
“No. I’m ok for right now. I just want it to be the three of us for now.”  
“Do you want to hold her?”  
Kate held her hands up, but they were still trembling. “I do, but I’m still shaking. I don’t trust myself yet.”  
“It’s ok.”  
There was a knock on the door and then Doctor Beauchamp walked in to find Kate and Chris smiling at their tiny baby. “Glad to see you’re awake, Kate.” She said, starting to do an examination. “How are you feeling?”  
“Tired. Sore. Itchy.”  
“I can imagine.”  
“What happened to me?” Doctor Beauchamp gave her a quick rundown of everything that had happened. “I died?”  
“No. Your heart didn’t stop, but it came very, very close to it. You’re going to be hanging out here for a couple more days so we can monitor you.”  
“What about our daughter?”  
“She’s perfect. We only had her in the NICU for a short time as a precaution since she was, technically, premature. She was six pounds, four ounces and twenty inches long. Her APGAR was nine.”  
Kate nodded. “When can I hold her?”  
“You could hold her now, but I understand if you’re worried about the shaking. That should go away in the next couple of hours. I’ll get the nurses to bring you in some antihistamines to combat the reaction to the morphine.”  
“That would be great.”  
“Whenever you need more, just hit this button here. I’ll be back in a little while to check on you again.” Doctor Beauchamp walked to the door. “Should I tell your families to come back in?”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Kate woke up and realized it had been the baby that had woken her. Chris was asleep in the bed next to her and she decided not to wake him. Getting slowly out of bed, she walked around to the bassinette on his side and lifted their daughter into her arms. She walked into the nursery and sat down in the glider.   
It had been five weeks since she’d been released to come home. Chris had been amazing taking care of her and the baby. She had pretty much lived upstairs for the first two and a half weeks while she recuperated. She had finally ventured out into the world for her first check up around three weeks. The doctor wanted her back again next week. Lisa and Helena had also gone home. It was just Chris and Kate there now.  
Kate looked down at her beautiful little girl. Madison Amanda Evans had been a dream. She was the complete center of her parents’ world. Her grandparents were enamored with her. Her aunts and uncles had fallen in love with her instantly. She looked like a perfect mix of Chris and Kate.   
Danielle had come over and she and Kate had done a newborn shoot. Chris had taken one of the photos of him and Kate sitting on the floor of the nursery in front of the crib, her holding Madison and the two of them staring adoringly at her, with Gally and Dodger on either side of them, and posted it as an announcement on Twitter that their little Jelly Bean had arrived. He had captioned it with, “It’s a girl! Mommy and baby are doing amazing. Thank you for all the love and support.” The photo had blown up. Kate, who didn’t post on Twitter but once in a blue moon, had gained almost a million followers overnight thanks to Chris tagging her in it. The media outlets had been showing it almost non-stop. Chris and Kate were even discussing selling some of the photos to a magazine for his charity, Christopher’s Haven.   
Madison began to get fussy, so Kate helped her to latch on and the two of them just stared at each other. “How are you so perfect?” She ran a finger down her daughter’s little cheek. After a few minutes, Madison began to drift of, but she was fighting it. “You’re going to make me do it, aren’t you?” Kate smiled and began to softly sing “A Dream Is A Wish Your Heart Makes” to her. She watched as Madison closed her eyes and finally fell asleep, still suckling. Feeling eyes on her, she looked up to see Chris standing in the doorway watching her. “Creeper.”  
“Sorry.” Chris smiled. “You weren’t in bed and Maddie was missing. I heard you singing and couldn’t resist.”  
Kate noticed the cell phone in his hand. “Did you take a picture?”  
“I may have.” He looked guilty as hell.  
“Did you take a video?”  
“I may have done that as well.”  
“Just don’t post it, please.”  
“They’re strictly for me.” He walked over and knelt down watching Madison as Kate detached her gently and moved her to lay on her chest. She let out a little burp in her sleep and her parents chuckled. Chris took another picture, a close up of Madison’s face against her mother’s porcelain skin.  
“Coulda sworn I’m the photographer in this house.”  
“You’re a little busy. Besides, your phone and camera are filled with pictures of me and Maddie.”  
“True.” Kate chuckled as she stood up. They walked back into their room and laid Madison back down in her bassinette.  
As they laid in bed, facing each other, Chris reached out and brushed her hair behind her ear. “I love you, Kat.”  
She smiled and placed her hand on his bearded cheek. “I love you, too, Chris.”  
“Let’s get married in October.”  
“That’s two months away!”  
“We can do it!”  
“We have a newborn. I have a job to get back to next month.”  
“It doesn’t need to be anything big. We can do it in the backyard of Ma’s house over the weekend. Just us and our families.”  
“Chris….”  
“Kate, I want to marry you.”  
“I want to marry you, too.”  
“So, marry me in two months!”  
“Why two months?”  
“Because October 24th is our one-year anniversary and I want to marry you before then.”  
“You’ve already started planning this in your head, haven’t you?”  
“October 22nd. It’s a Saturday.”  
“There’s so much to do! Even for a little wedding.”  
“We can do it.”  
“I think you’re sleep deprived.”  
“That’s beside the point.” She laughed. “Marry me, Kat?”  
“I’ve already said yes to that question.”  
“Marry me on October 22nd, Kat?”  
She stared at him in the darkness, listening to the sounds of the city below. It was incredible how much she truly did love the man she shared her life with. “Ok. I’ll marry you on October 22nd.”  
Chris pulled her to him tightly, kissing her fiercely.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*  
Kate looked at herself in the mirror as Danielle took pictures. She was standing there in an ivory lace, tea-length wedding dress that had quarter-length lace sleeves and a boat-neckline. Her dark blonde hair was loose around her shoulders in her natural waves. She was wearing pink ballet flats and her grandmother’s string of pearls that her mother had brought up to Boston for the wedding. Madison was being held by Lisa and she was wearing a light pink dress with a poofy skirt littered with little silver polka dots. There was a delicate flower at the high waistband and a matching flower on her hairband. At three months old she looked so much like her father, it was ridiculous. She was waving her arms and making noises at her mother.  
Kate laughed and lifted her up. “Hey my gorgeous little Jelly Bean. Are you ready to go see daddy?”  
“Daddy is ready to see you guys.” Lisa said.  
Helena and Bill walked into the room. “You couldn’t have picked a more perfect day to get married.” Bill said. “It’s beautiful outside.”  
“Is Killian here?” Kate asked.  
“They just got here.” Helena said, playing with her granddaughter.  
“Then it’s time to get this show on the road.”   
“I’ll see you out there.” Helena patted her daughter’s cheek and headed out to the backyard.  
Lisa kissed Kate’s cheek. “Welcome to the family, Katie. I love you so much.”  
“I love you, too, Lisa.”  
Lisa walked out and Bill turned to Kate. “You ready, Katie?”  
“As I’ll ever be.” Kate kissed Madison’s cheek and then looped her free arm through Bill’s arm.  
The backyard had been strung with fairy lights everywhere and they were beginning to glow in the early twilight. Throughout the yard were heating lamps to keep the October chill away. There were three tables set up in the yard. One round table had a little two-tiered simple white cake on it with plates and champagne glasses. Then there were two long tables. One with a buffet of Chris and Kate’s favorite foods and the other for the guests to sit at and eat. Scott had rented a sound system and music was playing from his iPhone.   
Chris’ father, Bob, and Scott were standing with Chris and the Massachusetts justice of the peace in the middle of the yard. Chris was wearing a dark blue suit with a black button up shirt and a silver tie. April and Amy were standing opposite them in dark blue, long-sleeved, empire waist, lace dresses. Lisa, Carly, and Shanna were standing with Helena, Killian, and Maura. Hailey was walking around in front of Chris dropping flower petals everywhere. Ethan, Miles, and tiny Stella were all playing a little way away. They had no interest in the romantic goings-on happening with the adults.  
Kate walked up to Chris and he grinned at her and Madison. “Hi.”  
“You look beautiful.” Chris said. “You both do.” He kissed Madison’s cheek and she gurgled happily at him.  
“Ladies and gentlemen, today we have gathered together to celebrate the marriage of Christopher Robert Evans and Kathleen Amelia Allen.” The justice of the peace started the ceremony, but Chris and Kate weren’t paying attention. They were too enamored in each other and their little girl. It wasn’t until Chris heard his name again that they started paying attention. “Chris, will you take Kate, to be your lawful wedded wife? Will you love, comfort, honor and protect her; forsaking all others to be faithful to her until death do you apart?”  
“I forever and always do.” Chris said with a huge smile on his face.  
“Kate, will you take Chris, to be your lawful wedded husband? Will you love, comfort, honor and protect him; forsaking all others to be faithful to him until death do you apart?”  
Kate smiled back. “I forever and always do.”  
“The bride and groom have chosen to recite their own vows. Chris?”  
Chris took a deep breath. “Kate, a year ago I was walking down a path with my head down, not paying any attention to the world around me and you stopped me dead in my tracks.”  
“By knocking me down into dog shit.” Kate giggled.  
“That dog shit was the best thing that ever happened to us. It set me on a new path that I will never have my head down on again. I know this hasn’t been the most conventional relationship, but it’s the greatest thing I’ve ever experienced. I promise you that I will always take care of and cherish our relationship. I will love you today, tomorrow, and forever. I promise that I will always be open, honest, and faithful to you. I love you so much, Kat.”  
“I love you, too.” Kate said, wiping his tears away before dabbing at her own.  
“Kate?” The Justice said.   
“I have to follow that? Jeez!” Everyone around them laughed. “Ok…. Wow. Chris, I first saw you in 2005 when you were in this little movie called Cellular. I was a sophomore in college and I was having a rough time and this guy on the screen just drew me in. I didn’t know what it was about him, but I just…. Well, I loved him. Then a year ago, he walked into my life and he loved me back and he gave me the absolute greatest gift in the world.” Kate kissed their daughter’s head. “Thank you for not taking any of the outs I kept giving you. I would’ve missed out on the greatest love story I’ve ever known since my grandparents. I promise that today, tomorrow, and forever I will love you for better or worse, in sickness and in health. I will love you and cherish you well beyond my last breath. I love you, Chris.”  
“I love you, too, Kat.”  
The justice of the peace had them exchange rings. Chris had chosen a simple white gold band with a small sapphire on top and he had two bands specially made for Kate. Her bands were each wrapped with little diamonds and sapphires and they squared around her engagement ring to make them more comfortable to wear together. His hands shook with excitement as he took off her engagement ring and placed her new bands around it.  
“Until now Kate and Chris have spent each moment of their lives as separate individuals. But from this day on, and every day after this day shall be shared and spent as one. By the power enthroned in me, by the state of Massachusetts, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss your bride.” Helena came and took Madison from Kate and Chris pulled his new wife to him. Their lips locked in a fiery kiss as everyone applauded them. “Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you Mr. and Mrs. Evans.” The applause got louder as the couple shared another kiss.  
The reception went by in a blur. They danced their first dance to “Can’t Help Falling In Love With You” by Elvis. Kate smushed cake into Chris’ face and he kissed her as he rubbed the cake on her face. The party went late into the night. When the newlyweds left in a town car, they went to the Boston Harbor Hotel where Chris had rented an insanely fancy suite that looked out over the water. Lisa was babysitting Madison for the night so they could have their wedding night to themselves.  
Kate leaned back against Chris’ chest in the giant soaker tub. The bathroom light was off and the place was lit by six candles around the room. There were two champagne glasses sitting on the edge of the tub. They had just spent the last hour and a half consummating their marriage all over the suite before retiring to the large tub to soak their tired muscles. He rubbed her shoulders gently, trailing kisses up and down her neck. “That feels amazing, Mr. Evans.”  
“Not as amazing as you look, Mrs. Evans.” Chris kissed her shoulder. “Are you happy?”  
“Insanely.”  
“Me too.”  
Kate was quiet for a long moment. “I miss Maddie.”  
“Oh god! I do too!”  
“Should we call your mom?”  
“Maddie will be asleep right now. We’ll pick her up first thing in the morning.”  
“Ok.”  
They were quiet for a long time. Chris finally broke the comfortable silence. “You know, if you had told me a year ago that I would be married with a kid now, I would’ve laughed in your face.”  
Kate chuckled. “If you had told me a year ago I would be married to YOU with YOUR kid, I would’ve slapped you for talking crazy.” She shifted slightly to look up at him. “I meant it, Chris. Thank you for never taking any of the outs I kept throwing at you.”  
“I wasn’t ever going to let the greatest thing in my life get away. I love you so much, Kat.”  
Kate’s lips met his again in a slow passionate kiss. “I love you, too, my Boston boy.”


End file.
